


Master of Disaster

by hammondteeth



Category: One Piece
Genre: Eventual Romance, F/M, Friendship/Love, Hurt/Comfort, Pain
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-09-28
Updated: 2021-02-27
Packaged: 2021-03-07 15:53:57
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Rape/Non-Con
Chapters: 10
Words: 24,513
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26690209
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/hammondteeth/pseuds/hammondteeth
Summary: The Don Quixote Pirates make themselves known for their cruelty as they make their way through North Blue to the Grand Line. When a young boy with a tragic past joins, his goal to destroy everything he hates starts with a clumsy man and emotionless little girl.-May deal with touchy subjects. Very slow-burn. Also on FF.
Relationships: Trafalgar D. Water Law/Original Female Character(s)
Comments: 12
Kudos: 30





	1. 1-Playing God

**_It has to be so lonely,_ **

**_to be the only one who's holy._ **

“I’m hungry.”

Mei’s hands tightly clenched her growling stomach. It had been at least three days since she last ate, but her mother and father promised her she’d be getting a big feast soon. “I know sweetheart, just wait a few more hours.” Her father told her quietly, brushing a strand of blonde hair away from her face. 

The three of them were currently shacked up in a beat down shed: the broken windows were letting in the cold night air, making her shiver. Her mother gently placed a blanket around her shoulders and laid her on her side. “We’ll get a nice warm bed soon, I promise.” Her mother kissed her gently on the head. “You promise?”

“We promise!”They each gave a big grin before she closed her eyes, attempting to sleep. Both of her parents had spent their lives treasure hunting, her birth was an accident, but Mei knew she was loved regardless. A few days ago, they came across some wrecked pirate ships, and her parents cried for joy. Apparently, someone important wanted what was in it.She didn’t really understand, but she accepted it. 

She waited until she heard them say ‘goodnight’ before peaking at the room. Her amber eyes scanned the small room as her parents curled up together in the corner under a blanket themselves. Across from them was the pile of important treasure. _‘Maybe there’s food in there…’_ She thought to herself as her stomach grumbled again. The small fire flickered in the middle of the room, illuminating a chest at the bottom of the pile.

After what seemed like an eternity, her parents finally fell asleep, snoring lightly. Mei got up with the blanket still wrapped around her and shuffled to the small chest. Surprisingly, there was a single apple shaped fruit sitting in the middle of it. It was a pale white, with black swirling designs across it. Her eyes shined as she happily grabbed it, shoving the whole thing in her mouth. She tried not to gag at the horrible taste. She’d never had something that was such an odd mixture of sour and dry. After what seemed like an eternity of chewing, she wiped the spit off the corners of her mouth and sighed. She didn’t want to think her parents were hiding out on food from her, but there wasn’t any way that a single piece of fruit could be more important than all the other treasure they had. Within a few minutes, with her belly quiet, she was sound asleep against the empty chest.

* * *

“What have you done?!” Her father screamed, grabbing her by the frayed dress and shaking her awake. His blue eyes seethed in anger and frustration as her mother collapsed on the floor and cried. “F-Father? What are you talking about?” Mei grabbed at his wrists in confusion. “The fruit, Mei, what did you do with it?!” She looked around, panicked as she tried to collect herself. 

“I-I ate it! I was so hungry!”

He dropped her to the ground, tears streaming down his face. “They’re going to be here any minute! How could you?! I told you to wait and we would have food!” He grabbed his head as he started pacing the room. “I-I’m sorry. I didn’t think it would be important! It was just one fruit.” She sniffled as her mother crawled over to her. She grabbed the young girl into her chest, sobbing into her hair. “It’s ok, Mei-chan. It’s not your fault. We’ll be ok.” She tried to console her, both of them trembling. 

There was a loud knock on the door. The two adults looked at each other in horror before it was kicked open.

Through her tears, Mei watched as three strange men walked into the makeshift house. The man in front had a large pink, feathery coat and spikey blonde hair. The man beside him had a similar coat that was black, long blonde hair, and a red hat. The last man on the other side had a black bowl cut, a strange beard, and a fork stuck on his left cheek. 

“P-Please, Doflamingo-san, understand we had a little accident.” Her father begged, quickly falling to his knees. “Hm?” The man in the middle, Doflamingo, raised an eyebrow before looking back at Mei and her mother. “An accident? ” He repeated, an evil grin starting to spread across his cheeks. “That sounds pretty unfortunate for the both of you.” He gave a deep chuckle before looking at the man with the fork on his face. “Vergo.”

Mei was barely able to blink before the man kicked her father with such force that he was sent flying through the wall. Her mother let out a terrified scream and threw herself in front of her daughter. “Please, whatever you do, don’t hurt her. She didn’t mean to eat it, she was just hun-“

She was cut off by what looked like a string wrapping around her throat. Doflamingo frowned so hard a vein popped on his forehead. “Don’t interrupt us.” He looked down at Mei, who had begun to grab her choking mother’s sleeve, trying to help her. 

“Kid, when was the last time you ate?”

“P-Please don’t hurt my mom and dad. They didn’t mean to, it was my fault!”

“Answer my question.”

She was trembling as her mother collapsed to the ground, struggling less as she began to suffocate. “I-I think it’s been three days.” She whimpered. “Hn.” Doflamingo released her mother, who gasped and coughed, grabbing her throat. “Mom!”

“Vergo, get the man.” Doflamingo demanded, walking over to Mei. He knelt down and placed a hand on her head. “I’ll take care of you. Come with me and you’ll never be hungry.” Her whole body was shaking in terror and she couldn’t find the courage to say a word. 

“Rosinante.” The man in the black coat walked up behind him. “Take the kid.” Doflamingo demanded and the other man nodded. Doflamingo grabbed her mother, sitting her up on her knees as Vergo came back with her father, covered in blood and barely conscious. “He’s not dead, Doffy.” Vergo said, throwing him down right next to her mother.

“Mom….Dad….” Mei’s voice was shaking as Rosinante picked her up into his arms. She watched in horror as the string wrapped around both her parents bodies from Doflamingo’s hands. He was chuckling as it started to tighten. Her mother was sobbing uncontrollably as she watched her daughter carried outside. “Mei-chan, we love you so much. Please take care of yourself. We’re so sorry.” She said, her voice hoarse. Her father looked up at her, blood dripping down his forehead. “Be strong, Mei-chan. We’ll meet again one day.”

Mei couldn’t hold it in any longer, she let out an excruciating cry as she was carried out of the building. The door slammed shut behind them, and she could still hear her parents begging for their lives. She could barely breathe she was crying so hard. A wave of guilt and terror flooded her body, wrapping around her chest like a fist.

The tall man, Rosinante, held her small body tightly as she flailed and smacked his shoulder. After walking some distance, he placed a hand tightly on her back and stopped. 

“What’s your name?”

She sniffled and buried her face into his coat. “Why do you care?! Y-You just killed my parents.” She muttered angrily. He pressed his hand down tightly against her. “I’m so sorry. I couldn’t stop him, my brother.”

“What are you even saying?” She pulled her head up to look at him. He held up a finger to his mouth and made a little ‘sh’ noise. Her eyebrows furrowed at him. “How can I trust you when your brother just killed my parents?!” She smacked him on the head with her small fist. He didn’t answer this time, instead just kept walking. She clenched her fists, grabbing onto his coat again. She didn’t want to trust him. She was angry. Sad. Confused. Her mind was racing with questions.

But, she could tell he was hurting too. Even if he was lying, she had nothing left to lose at this point.

“My name is Mei.” She mumbled, looking back towards the shed which had now disappeared into the forest. He nodded, giving her a small smile. There was maybe something slightly comforting about his goofy grin, something she couldn’t put into words yet. 

Unfortunately, that comfort didn’t last very long when he tripped over a rock, sending them both flying into the ground.

* * *

“Everyone, this is Mei, our newest member of the Donquixote Pirates.”

Mei looked around the table at all the adults staring her down. Rosinante had taken her to a large pirate ship docked on the coast and handed her off to a lady named Giolla. Surprisingly, she was very gentle with her. Even giving her a warm bath, clean clothes, and as well as brushed her matted hair. 

She was sitting next to Doflamingo at the head of the table and Rosinante was sitting to her left, smoking a cigarette in silence. They had given her a large plate of food with things she had never seen in her 6 years of life. 

“Let’s introduce you to everyone, shall we?” Doflamingo continued, raising a wine glass towards Corazon. “My younger brother, Corazon. He’s a clumsy idiot who can’t talk but he gets work done.” As if on cue, Corazon’s coat caught on fire at his shoulder. 

“Next is Vergo.” The man who helped kill her parents.

“Giolla.” The orange haired woman who gave her a bath.

“Diamante.” Another tall man with brown hair and a large mouth.

“Lao G.” An old guy with a bunny hat. 

“Gladius.” A younger man with grey hair and a mask over his face. 

“Pica.” A giant muscular man with grey hair and a helmet.

“Trebol.” A creepy guy in a robe with snot dripping out of his nose.

She looked down at her plate, pushing the piece of meat with her fork. For the first time in her life, she didn’t feel very hungry. “Young Master!” Lao G spoke harshly. “Should we really be bringing a little kid onto our ship? What is the purpose of this?”

“Are you questioning Doffy’s decisions?” Trebol asked; his voice was rather annoying. “I’m sure you’re wondering as well, isn’t that right Mei?” Doflamingo placed a hand on her blonde head, turning her blood cold. “There was an accident in the forest, you see. Her parents abandoned her, leaving her hungry. The only thing she had to eat was the Bone Bone Fruit.”

She froze, staring at her plate. A large lump formed in her throat: she sniffed back the tears that were wanting to fall. Everything was her fault. Her parents were dead. Their killer kidnapped her and forced her into his sick crew. 

“How kind of you Young Master! Taking in such a cute little youngster. We’ll train you nice and well, Mei-chan! How much have you learned at school? Any battle training?” Giolla asked loudly, folding her hands under her chin.

 _‘Be brave. Be brave.’_ Mei took a deep breath. “I-I haven’t been to school. Or training.” She whispered, her voice tired from sobbing uncontrollably. Her stomach was in knots as everyone stared. Doflamingo laughed. “Don’t worry about that. We’ll make you into a fine pirate one day.”

“I didn’t think we had time to babysit a brat.” Gladius groaned, making Trebol laugh. “If Doffy sees potential in the girl, then so should we!” Diamante held up his wine glass. “To Mei!”

“To Mei!”


	2. 2-Third Degree

**_'Burn yourself into me_ **

**_and leave my body charred.'_ **

**1 Year Later**

“We’re going out on a mission tomorrow.” Rosinante told her as he took a drag from a cigarette. “Yeah. I just don’t know if I’m ready to hurt anyone yet.” Mei said honestly, skipping rocks out into the sea. She had been training hard with everyone to learn how to fight and use her Devil Fruit powers. 

Doflamingo taught her how to activate her abilities shortly after joining the family. She was able to create bone weapons, armor, even a little skeleton doll she kept in her room. It took a lot of her energy, so she could only do so much with it.

Senor Pink and Machvise joined the crew shortly after she did: Senor Pink was a quiet man in a fancy suit and Machvise a boisterous man in shorts and a tank top. Giolla was attempting to teach her how to be a woman and take care of herself, whatever that meant. It was mostly just her talking about men and doing Mei’s hair, which was currently chin length with two thin braids pulled behind her head, and short side swept bangs.

Whenever they could, she and Rosinante would sneak far away from the others to sit and talk. She couldn't read, so he wasn't able to talk to her around anyone else. He told her about his Devil Fruit powers, the Calm Calm Fruit, and how he could mute everything around him. 

It was the middle of the night and they had come to the coast opposite of where the ship was docked to talk. She sighed and sat down on the water's edge, hugging her knees to her chest. “You don’t have to go if you don’t want to.” He sat down beside her, folding his long legs across each other. “I have to. He said he needs me for this one.” This was true. Doflamingo had been dealing with a group of underground arms dealers and was having a hard time with coming to an agreement. Mei was supposed to play the role of his daughter, who he promised a hand in marriage in exchange for their profit. Their meeting tomorrow was going to be an ambush.

“I’m sorry.” He apologized for what seemed like the millionth time. “I should’ve gotten you out of here a long time ago.” He let out a long exhale of smoke as she leaned over and hugged his arm. “Neh, Rosinante-san I told you to stop apologizing. We’ll leave one day, I know it! I have to get stronger first until then!” He laughed and placed a hand on her head. “You’re a weird kid, Mei-chan.”

“Tell me a story.” 

“Hm? What kinda story?” He asked looking down at her. “I don’t know. Something cool. Something about your past?” She tugged on his jacket lightly. He narrowed his eyes at her. “Something cool about my past? Well, you have to promise not to tell anyone. Ok?” He held out his pinky which she quickly grabbed with her tiny one. “Promise!”

“After our parents died, I ran away from my brother for a while to join the Marines. I met a really nice man who took care of me for several years.”

“Aren’t the Marines bad? That’s what Doflamingo tells me. He says never to trust a Marine if I run into one.”

He laughed and coughed at the same time. “They can be...not so great, but they took care of me. I met a lot of people in my time there but want to know the coolest one?” Her eyes sparkled at the question. “Tell me! Tell me!”

“The man who took care of me ate a Devil Fruit that turns him into a giant, golden buddha!”

“You’re lying!”

“H-huh?!” He was shocked and a little heartbroken at the same time. She jumped to her feet and pointed at him. “There’s no way a man can turn into a Buddha!” She argued and he smacked her hand away. “Are you accusing me of being a liar?!”

“Liar, liar, pants on fire! Or jacket on fire like it always is!”

“You’re such a brat!”

“I’m being serious, Rosinante-san your jacket’s on fire again!”

“Oh!” He looked at his shoulder erupting in flames and quickly threw himself in the shallow part of the water. “I don’t think that was the easiest way…” She deadpanned. He ran over to her, picked her up and threw her over his shoulder. “Rosinante-san, you’re going to get me wet!” He laughed. “That’s what you get for being a bratty little kid!”

“I am not.” She stuck her tongue out at him. “Fine, fine.” He set her back down on the ground and she grabbed onto his jacket, still too small to grab his hand. “Let’s head back, we have a big day tomorrow.” She sighed and nodded. “Ugh, ok.”

They walked back in silence, just in case anyone from the crew, or family as Doflamingo called it, were lingering about. The ship was quiet and most of the lights off as everyone should have been in bed by now. “Rosinante.” Doflamingo called out from the top of the bridge. Mei peered around Rosinante to look at the older man. 

“Young Master! Rosinante-san caught himself on fire and fell in the water again!” Mei tattled with a little giggle running up to Doflamingo. After the first three months of being with them, she learned to hide her anger and hatred towards this man. Faking devotion was the only way she was going to survive. 

“I told both of you to stop with the nightly walks. You’ll get us in trouble.”

‘Sorry.’ Rosinante scribbled on a sheet of paper from his pocket. Doflamingo just shook his head and leaned over to place a hand on Mei’s. “And what did I tell you last week?”

Mei swallowed hard. She really didn’t want to be a part of this sick fantasy. “I’m sorry father.” He beamed and ruffled her hair. “That’s more like it. Now get to bed, you have a long day tomorrow.”

* * *

Mei yawned as she walked next to Doflamingo towards the meeting spot. Giolla, Lao G, and Vergo were following up behind the two. “You shouldn’t stay out late, it’s not good for your health and beauty!” Giolla exclaimed coming up behind them.

“Um, Father.” She still had a hard time saying that word to him. “Hm?” She looked down at the pink frilly dress Giolla had put her in and tugged on it. “I don’t really have to marry this man? Right?” She whispered, grabbing onto his coat. He stopped suddenly and turned to her. “Did you really think that I would let you marry someone I don’t approve of?”

She looked away from, almost afraid to answer. He picked her up off the ground and set her on his left shoulder. She leaned against his head as he started to walk again. “I’d never sell my daughter for anything in the world.”

Her heart was pounding in her chest as she could see a group of men in black suits standing around a very fat and greasy man sitting on a throne. “You’re late.” He grumbled as he chewed on a bone. He had slicked back grey hair, dark stubble on his fat chin, and his white button shirt was coming undone and covered in grease stains. 

Doflamingo laughed as he set Mei down on the ground in front of him. “I’d rather my young daughter look more presentable than your average pirate.” He said, placing a hand on his hip. The man on the throne grunted and she could feel him looking her up and down. “A child, Doflamingo? Really? I expected at least a teenager. Send her over.”

She was gently pushed forward, and the closer she walked to him, the worse the smell got. Two lines of men stood on either side of her as the fat reached out his greasy hand to grab hers. “Mr. Maxamillion, I present to you my young daughter Mei.” She tried to be as stoic as possible as he lifted her off the ground by the arm and turned her around. 

“I guess this will do for now.” Maxamillion grunted as he shifted his weight to set her down on his lap. Her stomach churned at the smell of his body odor. “Boys, give the man what he needs.” He motioned for two of them to carry out a case towards Doflamingo.  _ ‘He wouldn’t sell me. He wouldn’t do it.’  _ Mei tried to keep telling herself but she couldn’t stop her heart from pounding. 

Suddenly, the atmosphere shifted. 

Guns started firing behind them and Mei covered her ears from the loud sound. She could hear Maxamillion laughing to himself as she watched the Family members defend themselves from the onslaught of bullets. She made eye contact with Doflamingo: he had a large vein on his forehead but as soon as he saw her face, he smiled. She knew what she had to do. 

Adrenaline took the palace of fear as she held out her hand, creating a dagger of bone from her palm. For some reason, she couldn’t stop herself. Her body acted on its own. Maxamillion was distracted with his laughter to notice her, but some of the men started calling out to him. 

She managed to gather enough strength to force the dagger into the side of his fat neck and pull it out. Blood started spurting out onto her which she wasn’t expecting. She threw herself onto the ground as he began to choke and gag.

“Get the girl!” 

She stood to her feet quickly, her mind not really processing what happened. One man grabbed her arm, holding a gun up to her face, but she could see the glint of Doflamingo’s strings as they tore into his body. More blood. It was everywhere. She didn’t know what to do. Her mind kept flashing back to her parents and how if she just waited a few more hours her life wouldn’t be like this. 

Another man held up a gun to her before she could run off, and she created bone around her lower arms to protect herself. One of the bullets barely grazed her upper right arm but it stung. She grabbed her wound with her hand as she ran forward, piercing the dagger straight into the other man’s stomach. This time she left it there as he fell to the ground, cursing in pain. She quickly turned around and ran straight towards Doflamingo, hiding behind his long legs. Lao G and Vergo finished taking care of the last few men left standing. 

“Take whatever goods you can find quickly. It’s only a matter of time before someone from town comes to check out what happened.” He said loudly before kneeling in front of Mei. Her eyes were wide in pure terror and half her body was covered in blood. He gently placed a hand over her wound, causing her to flinch. “Good work today. Diamante will stitch that up for you when we get back to the ship.”

He lifted her up in his arm and held out his hand, letting the strings catch on the nearest tree. Without warning, she was flying through the sky in his arms. Her small, bloodied fists clenched his jacket. She couldn’t think or speak. Her heart was pounding and her stomach was in knots. The only thing keeping her awake was the wind blowing her hair into her eyes. 

The pair made it back to the ship where Rosinante was waiting for them on the deck. He bit the end of his cigarette as he feverishly wrote on a piece of paper. ‘What happened? Is she hurt?’ He showed it to his elder brother. Doflamingo laughed, a large grin adorning his face. “Just a little scratch is all. Mei-chan is a natural born fighter.” He boasted, gently placing her back on the ground. Rosinante knelt in front of her and placed his hands on her shoulders. Still, she didn’t speak, her vacant amber eyes stared right through him. His hands trembled. He knew he was too late to save her. 


	3. 3-Blooms

**'I won't deserve a chance at happiness, living this way.'**

**Two years later**

Mei walked alongside Rosinante, now dubbed Corazon since Vergo’s departure to the Marines, after an unsuccessful mission. He lit a cigarette calming and shoved his hands in his pockets. The pair had gone on a mission to the other side of Spider Miles, the Donquixote family’s new home for the past year, in search of a certain Devil Fruit. “We got what they had, it’ll be fine. Besides, he’d never be mad at you.”

After the first incident of Doflamingo faking her hand in marriage, the gag stuck and was used several more times to take out other pirate crews in the North Blue. And every time it seemed more and more like he believed Mei was his own daughter, and so did the rest of the family. Mei decided not to fight it anymore and did what she was told.

Corazon looked down at the blonde headed girl as she walked silently, a small pouch of coins in her hand she had stolen from those lying thieves. His older brother had forced her to conquer her Devil Fruit abilities more and more by throwing her in dangerous fights. He hadn’t seen her smile or laugh in two years. _‘Just wait a while longer, Mei-chan.’_ He thought to himself as they walked up to the giant trash pile. The stupid other brats, Baby 5 and Buffalo, were playing obnoxiously outside their home. _‘I’ll get us out of here soon.’_ He cursed himself for not finding the courage to leave today, but he knew Doflamingo would have him murdered in an instant.

“Cora-san! Mei-sama!” The two children cheered happily as the pair walked up. “Nyeh, Trebol! Diamante!” Buffalo called out as they turned to the window. “Cora and Mei-sama are back!” Baby 5 said, a hint of mischievousness in her voice. Mei stopped, letting Corazon walk forward, and she could see Baby 5 and Buffalo giggling. “Cora-san, wait-“ She tried to stop him but it was too late.

“He fell down!”

“I just knew he’d fall over!”

Mei frowned deeply as she stepped on the still lit cigarette that had flown out of his mouth when he slipped in the doorway. Corazon had tried his hardest to get those two annoying kids to run away like the others, but they persisted. He stood to his feet and walked over to the children, slapping them both across the face and into opposite walls. As Mei followed inside, she saw a new boy around her age from the corner of her eye. He was wearing a white hat with black spots, was covered in dirt, and smelled absolutely rotten. “What are you looking at?!” He seethed at her. She blinked slowly, ignoring him, and turned back to see Baby 5 giving Corazon a hot cup of tea.

“Corazon! Mei-chan, did you finish the job?” Diamante asked as Corazon spit out the hot tea, falling backwards in his chair. Mei walked away from the new boy and up to Diamante and Trebol who were sitting in the middle of the room. “Hand over the cash. Let’s make sure it’s right.” He demanded, holding his hand out to her. She placed the bag in his large palm. “Devil Fruit was a fake. That’s all they had.”

“Good work as always Mei-chan, you cutie pie.” Trebol said to her, sniffing a large booger back into his nose. She rolled her eyes in disgust. “You said your name’s Law, right?” Diamante turned her around by the head to face the other kid. “This here’s Mei, Doflamingo’s daughter. Better not mess with her or you’ll have everyone after your head.” He laughed sinisterly, patting her. Corazon stood up from his seat and made his way over to the kid, Law.

“This here’s another officer. His name’s Corazon, and he’s a total klutz. But he’s good at his job-thanks to his bloodline-he’s Captain Doffy’s little brother and Mei-chan’s uncle. He suffered a real bad shock in the past so he can’t talk no more.” Corazon picked Law up by his head. “Also, watch out. He hates kids.” Diamante finished too late as the young boy went flying from view.

“Is he trying to speak with Father?” Mei asked, turning to Trebol. Both him and Diamante laughed loudly. “Mei-chan, you’ll never guess what this kid did! He walked in here with bombs strapped to his body! Threatening to blow us up if the Young Master didn’t let him join!” They continued to laugh maniacally.

Mei gave a small ‘hm’ before walking back towards her bedroom. Usually after a few days of Corazon constantly beating them, kids with no powers ran off crying to whoever would listen. “Giolla-san!” She called out. “Oh, Mei dear we’re in here!” The woman’s voice echoed out from the game room.

Giolla was sitting across from Lao G playing chess with Dellinger in her arms. The little fishman baby was trying his hardest to grab the pieces. “We’re back if you run into father before I do. It wasn’t a real Devil Fruit so we took care of them. And now Cora-san is dealing with another kid.” Mei said leaning against the door frame. “Oh the Flevance kid, hm? I’m sure he’ll run away in no time.” Lao G muttered, rubbing his chin thoughtfully at the game.

“Flevance? Is that where he’s from?”

“Oh, Mei-chan you shouldn’t have to hear about such vile things. No need to worry about it.” Giolla said, using her free hand to shoo her away. “Go bathe dear, I’ll be right there to do your hair.” The young girl shrugged it off and turned to head towards her room. A warm bath did sound relaxing after her eventful morning.

Mei brought Dellinger outside to get some sunshine in the late afternoon before dinner. The young boy pulled at her shoulder length hair, now starting to turn wavy at the ends, to be let down. “Impatient kid.” She grumbled setting him down in front of her. His tiny hands started grabbing back towards her as he made unintelligible sounds. She smoothed out her pink dress before kneeling down, pointing at herself. “Mei.” She tried to sound out for the baby, but he just giggled and bounced up and down.

“Take me to your dad.”

It had been several days since Law first showed his face, and yet he continued to come back despite Corazon’s beatings. He was standing by the stairs of the deck, panting heavily with his fists clenched. “He doesn’t want to talk to you.” She said as Delinger played with her fingers, not looking up at the other boy. “I don’t care if he doesn’t want to talk to me. I’m not going anywhere until he accepts me!”

She could feel the anger radiating from his body. Finally, she turned to him. His clothes were even more battered than the first time they met, covered in blood and sweat. His yellow eyes were glaring daggers at her. “You should really find a place to take care of you.” He stomped over to her. Dellinger cooed and tried to grab his pants leg, but Mei scooped him back into her lap. “I don’t need to be taken care of.”

“You smell like rotten meat and you’re covered in blood and dirt.” She said matter of factly. He clenched his fists tightly and ground his teeth. “You don’t understand.” He wanted to hit her. Her dumb, emotionless stare was pissing him off. “I don’t really care to understand.”

“It’s lunch time!”

“Outside time was ruined, Dellinger. I’m sorry.” She sighed, getting back to her feet with the infant. She could see Senor Pink and Corazon walking up the stairs out of the corner of her eye. “I’d suggest you get out of here if you don’t want Cora-san to throw you off the building, again.” Law’s eyes widened as she turned around and headed back inside.

“Oi, Law. The Young Master would like to speak with you-“ Senor Pink was cut off by Corazon marching in front of him. He reached out and grabbed the young boy by the head before tossing him back out into the trash heap. Mei stood at the doorway as she watched the scene unfold before her. She almost wanted to feel bad for Law: at this point, all the other kids would have run off crying at Corazon’s beatings.

The rest of the Family poured into the dining area where there was food already set out for them. Mei took her seat in between Doflamingo and Trebol with Dellinger still in her lap. “Mei-chaaaann you look absolutely adorable in that dress today.” Giolla fawned over her. “You’ll have to be careful or one of these boys might sweep you away from us!”

“I’ll kill anyone who lays a hand on her.” Doflamingo laughed, placing a hand on her head gently. She didn’t really care what either of them had to say about her and brushed him away. He let out another chuckle before digging into his steak. Diamante handed her a warm bottle for Dellinger from across the table. “After this we’ll head to-“ Doflamingo was cut off by the door flying open.

“Ugh, what is this kid doing here?!” Gladius scoffed as Law walked in the room, wiping away blood from his nose. Trebol laughed loudly. “Hey, Law! It’s almost been a week! You ready to quit yet?!” He placed a hand on Corazon’s head. “Corazon’s really put you through the wringer, eh?!”

“I’m not afraid of that! I’ve seen hell already!” Law said. His shirt was almost completely undone and Mei could see a white spot on his chest. Doflamingo stabbed his steak with his fork, laughing maniacally. “Bluff all you like! But keep in mind, Corazon is my precious blood. If anyone so much as scratches my brother, they die by my hand.”

Diamante raised his wine glass cheerfully. “The kids flee for their lives, but so do adults! All that’s left is the best of the best! So how long can a measly runt without powers last?” He loudly exclaimed before chugging what was left of his wine. “No matter what happens, do not forget the ‘blood law’.” Lao G spoke in between bites of his food. “If the officers are not given their proper respect, the Family falls apart.”

“Once I laughed at Pica-san and he nearly tortured me to death!” Baby 5 and Buffalo both giggled at that. There was a moment of silence aside from the clacking of silverware against plates. Dellinger was happily slapping his hands on the table while drinking his bottle. Mei looked up from her own food to make eye contact with Law across the room. She did feel sorry for him at this moment, but joining the Family wasn’t just something anyone could do as easily as he probably hoped.

Giolla and Machvise suddenly let out audible gasps, making her jump out of her thoughts.

“Hey, his skin’s all pale-in!”

“He’s got White Lead Disease! Be careful you don’t catch it!”

“What?! It’s infectious?!” Buffalo jumped to his feet and scurried with his back against the wall. “Gross! Get out of here right now!” He wailed, pissing Law off even more. Doflamingo slammed his hand on the table, causing Giolla and Dellinger to cry out. “Don’t embarrass yourself by spouting things you’ve only heard rumours of, Giolla.” He said, the smile fading from his face. Mei handed Delligner the bottle back to appease his little cries before turning to look at the man. It wasn’t very often he talked this seriously.

“See how Buffalo believed you? White lead is a toxin, it doesn’t spread from person to person.”

“B-But stay away from me anyway! I don’t want no part of it!” Buffalo’s cries were ignored. Doflamingo pointed his fork at Law. “Are there other survivors from Flevance?” He asked the young boy. “I dunno, I was just trying to escape.” Law answered, shrugging. “How did you get away?”

“I hid under a mound of bodies and snuck over the border.”

Gladius gagged on his food. “C’mon, we’re eating here kid!” He complained with a hand over his mouth. Mei set her fork down, suddenly feeling a little uneasy herself. The smile crept back up on Doflamingo's face. “And what do you bear your grudge against?”

The rage was almost visible around Law’s small body. “I don’t believe in anything anymore. I’m not afraid to die!” He pointed to the end of the table. “Don’t think you’re such a hotshot, Corazon! One day I’ll have my revenge on you!” Baby 5 jumped out of her seat and angrily slapped him on the back of his head. “Do you think you can cry and apologize to get out of it because you’re a stupid child? Are you really that stupid?! Weren’t you listening? If you try any funny business you’ll be tortured! The skewering punishment! We’re not pirates for fun!”

 _‘She’s one to talk.’_ Mei almost wanted to laugh as Law glared at her and she went crying to Buffalo like she always did. “Law. Leave us for now, we have business to attend. But stay around.” Doflamingo said, leaning forward with his head in his hand. Law groaned, giving everyone one last glare before he stomped back out.

The rest of lunch went fairly quickly as Doflamingo was sending most of them out to settle a group of traders that were trying to revolt against him. Giolla, Baby 5, Gladius, Machvise, and Senor Pink left to go take care of it while Mei put Dellinger down for his afternoon nap. “Have a good rest, kid.” She said softly, tucking the already sleeping baby into his cot.

“Father?” She called out softly as she exited the room, shutting the door behind her. It was hard not to be curious about this White Lead disease and Law himself. She ran her hand along the walls as she walked to the dusty and dingy room he liked to spend his time in thinking. “Father?” She called again, peeking her head through the open door. He had taken his coat off and was sitting in his chair with a bottle of wine. “Mei-chan, come see me.”

Dolfamingo set his book down on the arm of the chair to lift her up into his lap. Her stomach was in knots as he set her down on his knee: she hated any sort of physical interaction with this man, but her curiosity was getting the best of her. “Where is Law from? Why is his skin all white?” He chuckled, gently rubbing the top of her head. “Curious about Law, no?” She nodded, looking at the book he was reading. She tried to spell out what it said in her head, but she couldn’t quite process it.

“There was a beautiful place in North Blue called Flevance, but most people called it the White Town. It’s buildings were white, clothing was white, even their weapons.” He pulled her into his chest. “It’s people mined something called Amber Lead that was sold all over the world and gave the town it’s white color.”

“If they were so rich, why didn’t they have the money to fix themselves?”

“Only the nobles and World Government knew how bad it was, but they still let them mine it anyways.” She pursed her lips. _‘How terrible.’_ She thought as he continued. “The poison was delayed for many years, shortening each generation's life span until one generation, Law’s, was shortened until before adulthood.”

“So that means he’s going to die in the next few years?”

“Mhm. Three years he said, to be exact. Once the poison began to show, other countries quarantined Flevance in fear. Anyone trying to escape was killed instantly.” He picked up the book and started flipping through pages. “Eventually the people revolted with the Amber Lead bullets. The World Government answered by massacring the whole town. It seems like Law’s the only survivor.”

“His whole family’s dead?” She asked solemnly. He nodded, holding her closer to him. “Sad, isn’t it?” She swallowed hard, trying not to say what was on her mind. Instead, she wiggled her way out of his grasp and jumped down. “Mei-chan, how do you feel about Law?” She looked up at him: he was grinning from ear to ear, his eyes peering over his glasses at her. There wasn’t much she could say that would change his mind, she knew he already made up his mind. “He’s angry. But I guess, he could use a family.” She said honestly. He laughed at her. “He reminds me a lot of when I was young.” He leaned back with the book in his hand. “I think he’ll make a great addition to this Family.”

Mei excused herself from his room, shutting the door behind her. Her stomach was doing flip flops and she felt like she could vomit. She really did care all that much about Law, but that look in Doflamingo’s eye made her scared for him. _‘I should warn him.’_ Nodding to herself, she set off to find him. As she turned the corner, she ran headfirst into Corazon’s leg.

“Ah, sorry.” She muttered, rubbing her head. As she looked up, she saw Corazon holding his bleeding side. “Cora-san! What happened to you?” She grabbed at his pants leg, unable to reach his hand. He pointed at his chest and then towards a storage room they often snuck away to when they needed to speak. She nodded quickly, panicked, before running to find a med kit.

It only took a few moments for her to gather what she needed to treat him. He had undressed already and was grabbing the wound which had started to clot. “Are we under attack?” She asked, shutting the door behind her. He reached a finger out in front of him. “Calm.” The room was silenced so they could speak. She motioned for him to sit down on the floor in front of a box she could stand on. “It was Law.”

“Law? That asshole. I’ll teach him how to-“ He held up a hand to stop her rant. She huffed as she began to stitch up his wounds. “First of all, who taught you to curse like that?!” She pulled the strings taught making him flinch. “Are you going to tell father on him?” She asked quietly. As much as she didn’t care for him, especially after stabbing the one person she cared about, he didn’t deserve to die.

“You shouldn’t call him that.” Corazon quickly scolded her. “It’s a habit now, I can’t help it.” She bit the inside of her cheek as she motioned him to turn around so she could sew up the front. “It’s my fault. I should’ve made you run away on that day. Every Marine interception has been thwarted.” He said solemnly, going to light a cigarette. “That’s beyond us now. He’d kill us both if we took off.”

“We can still get away.”

“Pfft. You’re a dumbass.”

“Oi, stop using those bad words!” He shouted but grimaced at the pain. “That’s what you get. Back to the main point, Cora-san.” She began wrapping the bandages around his chest. “You’re too mean to me, Mei-chan.” He poked her on the forehead, which she ignored. “To answer the question, no. I’m not going to tell Doffy about Law. You and I both know what would happen if he found out.”

“Yeah, yeah.” He sighed as she taped the last piece of the bandage. “I do have something I need to do, I’ll be back in a few minutes.” He stood up and began to button his shirt back. “Hey, don’t move around too much or you’ll rip it open.” She warned, placing all the materials back inside the med kit box. “You’re such a cute, little doctor, Mei-chan.” A large, goofy grin was plastered across his face. “But don’t worry about me. I’m always fine.” He gave up a peace sign before making his way out of the room. She crossed her arms as he disappeared out into the hallway, followed by a large crash.

“Cora-san! Stop being so clumsy!”


	4. 4-Hole

**_'I am a dead weight, a contradiction of who I used to be.'_ **

**Chapter 4**

Law glared at the girl in front of him as she held up a tan pair of shorts to him. She had pulled her blonde hair back into a ponytail with a skinny, pink ribbon that matched her dress. Her emotionless eyes felt like she was staring into his soul. He was almost creeped out.

“These are the only two things we have in your size on hand.” Her voice was calm but empty. “I don’t need new clothes.” She folded up the shorts and placed them gently on the shirt she had given him earlier. His heart was still pounding from earlier, when Dolfamingo surprisingly invited him to join the Family, not knowing about Corazon. “You smell like shit. Go take a bath and change your clothes. We’re heading out tomorrow, you got lucky.”

He jumped when she suddenly removed his hat. “H-Hey, don’t take that!” He tried to grab it from her but she was too fast. “Calm down. I’m just going to wash it for you.” She spun the hat around her finger.He really wanted to punch that annoying, blank expression off her face. “Oi, Baby 5. Come here, I need you.”

“Y-You…need me?”

Baby 5’s purple eyes were shimmering, tears welling in the corners. “Yes. Will you wash this for Law-kun, please?” Mei handed her the dirty hat. The younger girl nodded quickly before running off with it. “Of course, Mei-sama!” Law frowned deeply. “I don’t need your pity.”

“It’s not pity.” Mei stopped her sentence quickly, holding a hand up to her ear. “Dellinger’s awake, I have to go take care of him. We’ll be having a meeting in an hour, so don’t be late.” She said quickly, waving her hand as she walked away. “H-Hey, you’re just gonna leave me here?” He called out to her but she was already gone.

“Dumb woman.” He muttered to himself looking at the nice pile of clothes she laid next to him. He unbuttoned his raggedy shirt and looked down at the small spot forming on his chest. It was long after Lammy had developed her first that she fell extremely ill. He just hoped his calculations from his father's notes were accurate.

After changing, he decided to walk around the musty, old building. Never in a million years would he have expected to be a part of the Don Quixote Family. Of course he was trying his hardest to be strong, but between the constant beatings from Corazon and beratings of Baby 5 and Buffalo, his will was slowly wearing thin.

“Law-inn!”

He stopped in his tracks and cursed to himself. _‘Speaking of him.’_ Buffalo walked over to him, a stupid grin spread on his face. “You got pretty lucky today, Law.” Buffalo whispered to him, unable to contain his giggling. “Whatever. I’m going to die anyways so who cares if they kill me.” Law seethed. The older boy just couldn’t contain his laughter as he walked away with tears in his eyes. Law ‘tsked’ and shoved his hands in his pockets as he continued making his way down the hallway.

After nearly an hour of wandering he met back up with everyone for the meeting. He took a seat in between Mei and Senor Pink with Corazon across from him. He tried to make eye contact with the man, but he kept looking down with his arms folded. “Law.” Mei said quietly, grabbing his attention back. Delinger was holding out his hat to him, giggling loudly on her lap. “It should be clean and dry now. I had Buffalo fan it with his propeller.” He took his hat from the baby and set back on his head. She was staring straight ahead at the table, a blank look on her face still. He grabbed the brim of his hat angrily; all he wanted was to know what she was thinking. _‘Annoying.’_ Cleaning his hat was the kindest gesture anyone had shown him in a long time. If she didn’t pity him then what was it, and act out of the goodness of her own heart? He wanted to scoff at that thought. It was probably hard to be a good person without a heart. He settled back into his seat as Doflamingo walked into the room. He knew he needed to prepare himself for what lied ahead, not meaningless people. Today, he was finally a pirate.

* * *

“Grab the sails! Gladius, prepare the cannons!”

Law held onto the railing of the ship as another cannonball smashed into the water next to them. Three Marine ships were hot on their tail as they headed towards Reverse Mountain. Once he got his footing, he helped Buffalo prepare the cannon and load the cannon ball. “Everyone, protect the ship.” Doflamingo declared with that trademark grin on his face. Mei was silently holding onto his neck, her body dangling on his back. “We’ll head over and take care of some of the ships.”

“Yessir!”

Doflamingo’s fingers cracked as he moved them, outstretching his arms. Law’s eyes widened as he watched the man jump into the sky, almost like he was flying. He knew the String String Fruit was powerful, but not enough to let someone fly. “Now do you see how powerful our Young Master is, Law?” Lao G asked him. “He’s so **_G_** reat!!!”

The cannonballs managed to hit one of the Marine ships, which slowly began to sink. Law could hear the cries of the soldiers on board, begging for help. “We did it!” Buffalo cheered from behind the cannon. Dellinger giggled as he slid down the neck into Buffalo’s arms. Law jumped suddenly when Corazon slipped and fell onto his back beside him. “W-Watch what you’re doing!” He couldn’t believe the younger brother of Doflamingo was such a clumsy idiot.

“Bahaha! Cora-san fell again!”

“Oi, Corazon get up before the water washes you away.”

“Try not to set yourself on fire-in!!”

Corazon stood back to his feet without a sound. Law frowned and crossed his arms as he turned back to the battle in front of him. The Marine ship was starting to split in crack in half; he could make out people jumping off in the water. A second ship was attempting to sail over to help the other and in an instant was sliced into four separate sections.

“Oho, Doffy isn’t playing.” Trebol mused, walking up behind the rest of the family. “Hm, I guess he really wants to get over Reverse Mountain.” Diamante added in. “What will we find over in the Grand Line?” Baby 5 asked innocently . Gladius placed a hand on her head. “You’ll find out in time.”

Everyone turned their attention to Trebol as the Den Den Mushi in his pocket rang. “Doffy?” He answered, sucking up a strand of snot back into his nose. Dolfamingo laughed on the other end of the line. “Good job. Come meet us on the other ship. I smell treasure.”

Mei was almost unrecognizable as she stood next to her father on the railing of the ship. Her body was covered in bone armor: a breastplate, her arms were covered except for her elbows and shoulders, gauntlets, a plate over her skirt, and boots. The most interesting part was a helmet in the shape of a horse head with horns on either side covering the upper half of her face. If he didn’t hate her, he definitely would’ve called her cool.

“There’s a vault downstairs, I think Gladius can blow it up.” She said coldly as Pica and Senor Pink laid the ladder up against the Marine ship. “Here, Law, take this and be useful.” Giolla handed him a bag. “Hm.” He watched as the bone armor around Mei slowly disintegrated to dust, flying off into the wind behind her.

“Everyone cover your ears.”

The bottom level of the ship had a large vault just like Mei had said. Gladius gently touched the lock of the door and walked back towards them at the end of the hallway. “Landmine Punc.” He pressed the tips of his fingers together causing a small explosion on the door. The vault swung open, the door hitting the other side of the wall with a thud. “Whoa!” Buffalo as a large load of treasure was revealed.

“Don’t just stand there, get to work.” Senor Pink grumbled, kicking Law in the back so he fell on his knees. The young boy looked up to glare at him but he was already walking away. “Giolla.” He was sitting across from her throwing whatever treasure Senor Pink and Lao G tossed out . “Hm? What is Law-kun?”

“How did she have all that bone around on her?”

“Interested in Mei-chan’s power, are we?” Giolla giggled, handing her full bag to Diamante. “It just shouldn’t be possible to make bone disappear like that.” He said, throwing his own bag over his shoulder. Secretly he was hoping he didn’t fall over: in the end he was still just a weak, little kid. “You’re right. That’s because Mei-chan ate the Bone Bone Fruit several years ago. She can create bone from any part of her body! It disintegrates when she’s through with it.”

“Mei-sama makes a sword that she uses to fight with too! She’s really good with it too!” Buffalo said as they made their way back to the ship. Giolla placed a few rings on her slender fingers and was looking at them smugly. “I’m sure she’ll be able to help you with training if you ask, Law-kun.” His face soured at the thought of dealing with ehr anymore than he had to. “I don’t really need her help with anything.”

Doflamingo and Mei had already gone back to the ship when they emerged on the deck. As he walked across, a fallen Marine reached out and grabbed his ankle. “K-Kid. Please get away from them. It’s dangerous.” The soldier coughed out, his hand clenching Law’s leg so tightly he thought it might break. He was lying in a pool of blood that seeped into his white uniform. Law’s heart was pounding in his chest, he couldn’t hear the others shuffling off behind him.

“C-Come help me. We’ll get away from here.”

His whole body was filled with rage as he looked down at the injured man. His mind was screaming ‘kill him’ over and over again. This could be the first person, the kickstarter to his destruction he so craved.

“Law, let’s go.” Diamante’s voice knocked him back into reality. The tall man stood behind him reaching his arm out. Something slithered out of his sleeve, straightening out before stabbing the Marine in the back. His hand released off Law’s ankle as he collapsed back into his own blood. Diamante pulled back and what he now realized was a sword folded itself back up into his hand.

“Were you scared?” Diamante was trying to rouse a reaction out of him as they turned around. “No.” Law scoffed, grabbing his bag tightly. “I wanted to kill him, but I didn’t have anything I could use.” Diamante laughed obnoxiously, placing a hand on his stomach. “Ah, don’t worry about that then. We’ll teach you everything you need to know. You’ll see.”


	5. 5-The Most Beautiful Bitter Fruit

**_'I only know I never wanted to get left behind'_ **

**Chapter 5**

"We have yet to celebrate Law-kun's arrival!" Doflamingo slammed his fist at the dinner table. It had been about three months since the young boy's arrival. The Don Quixote Family had traveled over Reverse Mountain into the Grand Line, already made headlines after visiting their first island. 

"Young Master, does this mean a celebration?!" Baby 5 clapped her hands together in delight at the other end of the table. He chuckled and raised a glass. "Let's set up on the deck, it's a beautiful night for a party!"

Wherever the Don Quixote Family landed, people flocked to them in hopes of joining their crew. Several were killed but most of them fled in fear of their lives when they realized how ruthless they really were. Very few were able to come aboard as lowly grunts. 

_ 'Pathetic.'  _ Mei sighed to herself as she sat on a small box with a glass of juice. She watched the grunts run back and forth, cleaning up messes and refilling drinks. The adults had already started drinking before dinner even started. Giolla and Lao G were dancing happily together in front of a clapping Pica. Diamante was showing off his Devil Fruit powers to Baby 5, Buffalo, and Dellinger-the latter had no idea what was going on but was just happy to be involved. Doflamingo was leaning against the railing, his hand on Law's head and speaking gibberish to a mute Corazon. 

"You look bored." Senor Pink moved his cigarette between his lips and shoved his hands into his pockets. She looked up to him and sarcastically raised her glass. "I won't tell anyone if you give me some alcohol." He waved his hand at her and turned away. "Tch. You're a brat."

"Mei-sama, would you like some more?" A grunt walked up to her, his goofy grin showing off his enormous buck teeth. She raised an eyebrow at the man but held out the glass. "Sure. Thanks, I guess."

Her emotions were all over the place as she continued to watch everyone. They all seemed happy, blissful even. She couldn't help but wonder if they were ignorant or just plain stupid. Her eyes turned to Law as he and Gladius spoke. It was surprising how long he lasted through Corazon's torment. She did feel a little sad for him, it wasn't like he had anywhere else to go. 

She didn't break contact when their eyes met. He frowned deeply: he hated her along with the rest of the world. It wasn't something she really cared about. She tolerated everyone here besides Corazon. 

"Why do you keep staring at me?" He demanded after walking over to her. She sighed and jumped down from her box. "Do you really think you're going to die in three years?" He raised an eyebrow at her question. "I know I'm going to die in at least three years."

"Why'd you come here?"

"So I could destroy as much as I could before I die."

She couldn't help but snort at his answer. He probably picked the best option. "Why are you asking me that?" He crossed his arms over his chest. A little part of his button up shirt moved, showing off the part of skin that was pale white. "You could've gone to a lot of other places." She shrugged. 

"You're really annoying, you know that."

She choked on her drink making him laugh. "S-Shut it." She couldn't help but be a little embarrassed. "Anyways, I wouldn't say that too loud. I don't care but he might get mad about it."

"Are you really his daughter?" He pressed. Her eyes moved from him to Dolfamingo. The man was standing in between Trebol and Giolla, his arms spread out as he went on a passionate rant. "Yes." There was a bitter taste in her mouth as she spoke, looking back to the boy in front of her.

Law sighed dramatically. "You don't act anything alike, but I guess you look similar. He's much cooler, though."

"H-Hey. No one invited you over here to be an ass!" He laughed again, internally cheering for finally finding a way to get some form of emotion out of her. "Next time you laugh at Pics I'll let him beat you up."

"I don't really care about that." 

Mei furrowed her eyebrows at him, his yellow eyes gleaming with excitement. "Buffalo said you can fight with a sword. Teach me." She scoffed at his request. "And why would I ever do that?" She set down her drink to cross her arms. "So I don't die on missions." 

"Like I care if you die." It almost felt like a swift punch to the gut as his plan failed. 

"But I guess it would be fun to kick your ass." She placed a hand on her cheek and looked away in thought. "Why do you think you'd win?!" Her blank expression scared him a little. "I mean, I know I'd win. You can't even hold a sword properly." 

His face fell. She was right. They both knew she was. There was no denying he had absolutely no idea how to fight, even with his fists. Her facial expression never changed, but he could feel the smug aura as she walked away. "But I'm sure it'll be fun regardless!"

  
  
  
  


Doflamingo cackled as he crossed his legs. "If you hurt my daughter Law, you may never see tomorrow." He rested his head against his hand, his gleaming eyes hidden behind the sunglasses. Law swallowed roughly before turning to face Mei.

The two of them had agreed to a small skirmish or sorts on the deck. He held the wooden sword tightly in his hands as everyone got settled around them to watch. Apparently it was rare for the young girl to train with anyone other than Corazon or Doflamingo, but she had brought up the fight with her father at the party last night. 

His hands were starting to sweat as he gripped the sword tightly. "It's not fair if you make armor." He informed her. She shrugged casually. "I mean, fighting isn't really fair but I'll go easy on you this time." He clenched his teeth and narrowed his eyes. It annoyed him to no end how little she thought of him. 

Mei looked over Law as he got in some weird stance, preparing to fight. It was painfully obvious he had absolutely no idea how to hold a sword. She held out her palm, creating a long pole of bone. She spun it around her hand before grasping it tightly in the middle. "I guess I'll use this instead of a sword." 

"Kick his ass, Mei-sama!"

"Go easy on the poor kid, he just joined!" 

Pica was standing off to the side. "Fight!" He squealed, signaling the beginning by thrusting his arm down. Law bolted forward, unable to control his anger, lashing it all out on her. As he reached where she stood, he lunged his sword straight forward, trying to stab her in the abdomen. With a single, fluid step, she turned her body sideways. He stumbled forward a little, surprised by the sudden movement. 

Again, she was completely expressionless, her dead eyes following his every move. 

"Dammit." He cursed under his breath, using one arm to swing at her. She jumped back a few feet as he sliced through the air. "You're not very good at this." She mumbled, scratching the side of her face with a finger. "At least fight me back, coward!" He screamed, pulling himself back into a more stable fighting stance. She raised an eyebrow at him. "Coward?"

He lunged at her again, this time holding the sword above his head with both hands. As he swung down, it almost seemed like she disappeared for a few seconds. She quickly moved behind him. His eyes widened as her weapon smashed against his arm, sending him flying. He crashed into an empty barrel that one of the grunts was rolling below deck and shattered it. 

"What the…?" He groaned as he tried to sit himself back up, but his right arm gave out beneath his weight.  _ 'Broken?!'  _ He watched nervously as she walked over to him. He could feel all his rage boiling inside as she looked down at him like he was nothing. 

"You won. Now get away from me." 

"Is your arm hurting?"

He looked at her suspiciously. She didn't ask it in any sort of tone, but there was no way she could possibly be concerned. Reebok laughed obnoxiously as he walked over to the pair. "See Law? See? Law?! Mei-chan is quite strong for her age, she's been practicing every day for years! Us executives are much stronger, though! You'd never come close to beating us!"

"Law got his ass kicked by Mei-sama!" Baby 5 giggled, holding a hand gently over her mouth. Law glared at her, making her cry and hide behind Buffalo.

"Law." Everyone moved out of the way as Doflamingo came up to the young boy. His grin never faded as he spoke. "You have plenty of potential." 

Law bit the inside of his cheek. He was angry, scared, frustrated; so many emotions flooded his body, it was overwhelming. Mei knelt beside him, attempting to grab his arm. He pulled it away quickly but winced in pain. 

"Let me see it." She said quietly, placing her small hand on the crook of his elbow. He grimaced at the thought of her doing anything else to him. Doflamingo chuckled. "It's up to you, Law."

His yellow eyes looked her face over; her eyes were gentle but empty. "Fine." He agreed, pointing to the upper part of his humerus, close to his shoulder. "It's broken here, I'm pretty sure." 

She nodded and placed her hand against that part of his arm. "It might feel funny." She whispered. A warm, tingly feeling started in the area she was touching and made its way through his whole upper arm. There was a little bit of pain, but no worse than a cut. 

"You should be fine now." She removed her hand from him and stood up, brushing the bone dust off the edge of her dress. He pushed himself up, this time without fail. "Whoa." He couldn't stop himself for mumbling as he bent and turned his newly healed arm around. 

Mei looked up as Corazon walked over to them. 'How do you feel?' he quickly scribbled on a paper to Law. "Tch. I'm fine." He answered quickly, getting back up to his feet. "When can I start my training?" 

It seemed impossible, but Doflamingo's grin widened. "You're serious about this, eh Law?" The young boy nodded, wiping dirt off his face. He watched as Corazon and Mei walked away. She was holding onto the edge of his jacket and he gently placed a hand on her head. The sight made him irrationally angry. 

"I'm ready."


	6. 6-What You Know

**_'I can tell just what you want: you don't want to be alone.'_ **

**Chapter 6**

Mei hummed to herself as she walked along the hallways of the ship. Her mind kept deciding to relive that day almost three and a half years ago. Corazon was asleep and it was too risky attempting to talk to him with so many others around anyways. 

The light to the library was on, and she figured Doflamingo was up late preparing. A pirate named Wellington had been destroying some of the underground arms storages Doflamingo had created recently. This started about two months ago and the Family was having a difficult time tracking the pirate down, making Doflamingo grumpier than usual. 

She decided to be nosey and bother the man, but was surprised to see Law scribbling away frantically. He had several large books surrounding him, even some half open on the floor. "What are you doing?" She tilted her head a little as the boy nearly fell backwards in his chair. "You shouldn't sneak up on people like that!!"

"You should have heard me coming, then." She said smugly as she walked over to him. "What do you want? I'm busy. Go back to bed." He muttered, placing his head in his hand. "I can't sleep. I thought you were my father." She pulled up the chair from the other desk beside him. "I didn't say you could hang out with me!" His face was red with frustration. 

Her eyes scanned over the textbooks as she brushed a piece of hair behind her ear. "Why are you doing this?" She pulled one into her lap with a gentle thud. He sighed, giving up on sending her away. "I'm trying to learn how to fight properly by reading about strategies. I'm also reading medical textbooks."

Law had been part of the crew for six, almost seven, months and he was still terrible at fighting. Everyone excluding Doflamingo and Mei had been trying to help him learn, but it mostly ended up with him unconscious. "Why do you need the medical stuff?" He was surprised she seemed genuinely interested in it. "I want to continue trying to be a doctor, even though I'm going to die."

"Do you think you can save yourself?" She flipped through the book on her lap, stopping a page that showed an anatomically correct heart. "Probably not. My parents were doctors and they would've figured it out before they died. There's no cure for me." She looked up at him and poked his cheek. "You're getting another white spot here." He angrily slapped her hand away. "I know that, you don't have to touch me!"

"Well you tell me what this is, then?" She moved her finger down the picture. He raised an eyebrow at her. "What do you mean, you idiot. It's a heart. It says it right there too." She pouted a little and gripped the edges of the book. Her eyes narrowed as she scanned the page: she could tell they were letters but they just didn't make any sense to her. 

Law watched as she stared down at the page in silence. He suddenly felt guilty as he realized. "You can't read, can you?" She leaned forward more, hiding her face behind her hair. He was shocked that the daughter of such a prominent pirate didn't know such a basic skill. 

She shut the book quickly, the blast of air scattering some stray papers. Her face was pink as she turned to speak with him. "I've never been to school my whole life. I can't help it." 

He couldn't stop the chuckle that escaped his mouth, turning her face even more pink. "It's not funny!" She whined as he turned back to his notebook. "No one wanted to teach me!"

"Maybe they would if you weren't so annoying." 

Her eyes widened at his comment. "How am I annoying? I don't even talk!" She was frustrated by the way he constantly acted like she was scum of the earth. "Exactly!" She jumped as he turned and pointed at her. "You barely talk! You don't have any emotion! You just sit there with this stupid, blank stare on your face!" 

It was a little surprising to hear him explode on her like that. "The only person you talk to is that dumbass Corazon who can't even talk back to you! And you can't even read what he has to say!"

"Leave Cora-san out of this." She was quiet but spoke harshly. "I don't understand why you have to be such a jerk. I've always been nice to you." She dropped the book on the desk in front of him before hopping out of the seat. He watched from the corner of his eye as she walked out of the room, not saying another word. 

He leaned back in his chair and sighed loudly. Part of him wanted to feel bad about everything, she really hadn't done anything wrong. He had no idea why her presence pissed him off that much. Corazon made sense, but not her. He didn't have the energy, or time left in his short life, to really care too much about it. He tapped the corner of his notebook with the pencil obnoxiously. 

Suddenly, the thought came to him. He could be kind while getting something out of her he wanted. He smiled devilishly as he went back to writing. Hopefully everything would fall into place soon. 

* * *

  
  
  


Mei sat at the table and nibbled on her breakfast while trying to feed Dellinger his bottle. His tiny little hands struggled to hold the bottle up in the air while he drank from it. 

After last night, she decided Law was just like everyone else here. They were around the same age, and Corazon recommended at least trying to be friends. He had hoped it would make her feel better about this living hell. She figured at this point she was going to be surrounded by assholes for the rest of her life. 

"Oi."

She groaned internally as Law took a seat next to her. Dellinger dropped his bottle into her lap as went to reach for him. "What do you want?" She said coldly, refusing to look at him. "You don't need to be so abrupt." He laughed awkwardly, but cleared his throat when she didn't answer. 

"Sorry. I-I just have an idea. Maybe we can help each other out." She raised an eyebrow as she handed Dellinger back the bottle. He took it in his mouth but continued to try and grab Law, forcing her to hold it. "Continue."

"Well you see," He continued, unable to control his grin. "I can help you learn how to read and write." She turned her head quickly. He was surprised by the shimmer in her eyes. "But you have to help me train."

"That's it?"

He nodded, unsure of how she'd react. "You'd really teach me how to do that?" She almost didn't believe him. Part of her wanted to cry: this was the nicest thing anyone has done for her in years. 

Law was almost in shock at her reaction. He mostly expected her to be pissed and storm off again. He watched as her fist grabbed the end of her green dress tightly, awaiting a response. "Y-Yeah." He didn't know why he was stumbling over words. "I mean, it can't be that hard right?"

She turned her head back away, hiding her face. Dellinger let go of his bottle again and started to grab at her hair. "Can we, maybe start tonight?" He held out his pinky. "Only if you train me tomorrow." She removed Delinngers small hands and made one of them grab Law's pinky. The baby giggled happily, oblivious to Law's discomfort. Mei smiled softly. 

"Deal."

* * *

  
  


Law's eyes widened in horror. Mei was sitting beside him, her face flushed with embarrassment. "Did you really expect me to know? I can't even read!" She muttered, trying to defend herself. She held up the book from her lap and hid her face. 

"So you've been healing bones, without knowing any bones in the body?" He asked. She peeked her eyes over the pages at him. "Yes." Her voice was muffled. A long sigh escaped his mouth before he pulled out one of the books on the desk. "Well, on top of reading and writing. I guess I'll teach you basic human anatomy so you don't fuse anyone's body together."

"I haven't done it yet in almost four years! That has to be good for something!" 

"I think you just got lucky."

She pouted as she dropped the book in her lap. “Well, nevermind that. You can’t even read the names of the bones yet anyways. We’ll get there.” He waved it off. “Let’s start with the basics of reading and then we’ll write some words, ok?” She nodded quickly, focusing herself on the book he opened in front of them. 

It took a while to get through a couple sentences. He had never taught anyone, so he just tried to channel how his dad worked with him on medical textbooks. She listened intently to everything he had to say, but he could tell she was struggling. It was getting late, and both of their eyes were getting heavy. 

“Maybe we should head to bed and start again tomorrow night, ok?” Her hand was starting to waver as she attempted to write the alphabet. She chewed the inside of her lip, disappointed in herself. She looked up at him as she closed the notebook and set it on the desk. “Do you think I’m stupid?” Her voice was soft, almost innocent. Law furrowed his eyebrows at her. “Stupid? No, it’s not your fault no one taught you to read or write. Annoying is the better word.” 

“I guess maybe I am kind of annoying….”

She jumped when he smacked her on the head. “You obviously don’t know how to take jokes either.” He sighed, awkwardly scratching his cheek. “I-I guess you’re not as bad as thought. You better keep your end of the bargain, however.” She nodded quickly. Everything about this actually made her excited, almost happy. “This means we’re friends right?” 

The question caught him off guard a little. After expecting the worst of the deal, he was pleasantly surprised by how focused and calm she is. He’d never say it out loud, but studying together was a nice break from the often chaotic atmosphere the rest of the Family created. “Eh, sure. I guess.” It didn’t sound sincere at all, but she gave a soft smile regardless. It looked almost foreign on her face after seeing that cold stare for so long. 

“You’re the only other person who’s been nice to me here besides Cora-san.” She sounded more cheerful as they put the books away. “Tch. Corazon is an asshole.” He grumbled, flinching slightly when she smacked his arm. “He is not! You just won’t give him a chance!”

“Why should I? He tried to kill me.” There wasn’t any denying Corazon beat the poor boy to a bloody pulp those first few days. “He was just trying to help you.” She said quietly before grabbing the candle to take to bed. “That’s a lie.” He shoved his hands into his pockets. “He probably has, like, three braincells anyways. He can barely walk without almost killing himself.” 

“He’s just clumsy, he can’t help it.” They stopped in front of her room. She had a small bedroom just to herself near the library, while everyone else but Doflamingo and Corazon slept in the bottom of the ship together. He could barely get a good night's sleep in between Buffalo’s snoring and Diamante’s sleep talking: there was only a little jealousy at the thought of sleeping in his own bedroom. She handed him the candle to take back with him. “Well, you should at least give him a chance, ok?”

“No.”

She tried to play off her shock at the quick response. “W-Well, a-anyways. I do really appreciate everything you’re doing. I’ll meet you tomorrow morning before breakfast, ok? We can practice on the deck.” She placed a hand near her mouth, trying to cover her voice. “Be careful though, he will probably be there too.” She spoke ominously. He rolled his eyes, too tired to even think about tomorrow now. “Yeah, yeah. Whatever you say.” He yawned as he turned around. A cocky smile spread over his lips. “But don’t be too upset when I kick your ass tomorrow.” 

  
  



	7. 7-There For You

**_‘Runs deeper than my bones,_ **

**_I wanna be there for you’_ **

“Are you sure you want me to use a real sword?” Mei held out the bone sword she created from the palm of her hand. "Don't antagonize me!" Law yelled from the opposite side of the deck. 

The ship swayed gently in the sea. The sun had barely started to come up, leaving the sky an array of orange and yellow hues. A few of the grunts were working to scrub the floorboards and set sail around them. Otherwise, no one else was there to watch. 

Law was slightly embarrassed by Mei. She was strong and calculated. Even when she did things she wasn't good at, like reading and writing, she had confidence. He, on the other hand, was just arrogant and a perfectionist. Not being good at something the first time just made him angry. 

"You know I don't understand those words." She pouted, placing a hand on her hip. He slapped his face with his hand dramatically. "Can we just get started on this before breakfast starts?" The anxiety in his voice made her smile.

"Let's begin then!" She stood with her sword across her body and flipped it so the blunt side was facing him. "Why don't you practice your attacks? You need to think about the enemy's move-" She dodged him charging at her, a bored look spread on her face.  _ 'This idiot!'  _ She screamed to herself as she brought the hilt of her sword down on his forehead. 

"What the hell?!"

He rubbed the now sore spot, glaring up at her. "Stop being so impatient!" She was already getting frustrated with him. "You'll die out there if you swing at everyone like that! Think about the fight itself and what you need to do. You're rushing in." She waved the sword like a scolding finger. He gripped the brim of his hat tightly. "Fine. You have a sword, and you're fast. I just need to be faster and have two swords."

Exasperated, she let her head fall. "Law. I thought you were smart." Her mutterings made him angry. "You're not doing a very good job at teaching me to fight!"

"And you're not doing a very good job of listening."

She stood back with her sword out. "Look, you don't always have to be faster than me, just smarter. You could trick me. If you're not fighting alone you could back me into someone else. There's a lot of different options." 

He gripped the wooden sword tightly in his hand. His yellow eyes looked over her: standing strongly with her sword protecting her body, that cold and empty stare lingering on her face.  _ 'I could fake her out going to the left….' _ He started running towards his left, their eye contact never breaking. He pulled back his sword but instead of swinging, he lowered his body and aimed for just below her chest. Of course, she could easily read his slow actions and dodged by jumping backwards. Law swung the sword upwards, hoping to at least get a little hit on her, but she was too fast. The force of even the blunt side of her sword hitting his wooden one caused it to break in half. 

“Dammit.” He cursed angrily to himself, staring down at the wooden shards left scattered around him. This was frustrating: at this rate he felt he’d never get better. Mei let her bone disintegrate as she walked over to him. “That was so much better already!” She held up a fist triumphantly, smiling brightly at him. He frowned deeply. “I still lost.”

“Yeah, but you actually thought about how to attack me instead of rushing with all your anger.”

He sighed, looking down at the broken sword and back to her. It was definitely weird seeing her smile or just be happy in general. He gave a half smirk back. “You really think so?” He asked, a mixture of excitement and nervousness in his voice. She nodded quickly. “I do! I think if we keep practicing, you’ll be better in no time!”

“Law. Mei.”

They both jumped slightly as Doflamingo and Corazon walked out onto the deck. Doflamingo had that stupidly large grin on his face as his brother lit a cigarette. “I didn’t think you’d be one to help out young Law, but I guess I was wrong.” He knelt down and placed a hand gently on her head. “You must get your kindness from me.” He chuckled, sending a shiver down her spine. 

Law wiped a little sweat from his upper lip as he watched the two of them. It was almost uncomfortable watching Doflamingo dote over his own daughter, who in return wanted nothing to do with him. In fact, she was more or less terrified of him from what he could tell. He didn’t understand them at all. 

Corazon suddenly went up in flames, breaking the sudden awkward tension. “I was looking for you two earlier. We’ll be landing in two days on an island Wellington has taken residence on for the past week.” Doflamingo stood back to his feet, watching his clumsy brother rolling around as the grunts tossed buckets of water at him. “Come to the dining room, we’ll go over the plan during breakfast.” 

  
  


Law glared at the opening of the mine shaft, ignoring Baby 5’s constant blabbering. The pair of kids were left in charge of guarding the back entrance, although the Executives assured him they would most likely just be sitting ducks. 

“Hey are you even listening to me?!” 

He shot a look at the young girl, instantly sending her to tears. “Why are you so mean?!” She managed to sniffle out through her tears. “You’re annoying.” She continued to cry, rubbing the tears on the edges of her eyes. 

Suddenly, the ground began to shake and a loud noise erupted from the mines. “What do you think that was?” Baby 5 asked worriedly. Law shrugged carelessly before sitting down on a box. “Nothing we need to worry about. They’re fighting in a tunnel, it is bound to collapse sooner or later.”

“How can you be so calm?!”

“We’re weak, that’s why we’re sitting outside.” He placed his head in his hand and sighed. To think he was maybe going to be able to fight for once. It was hard for him to admit, but he wasn’t a liar. He was the weakest member of the Family, even behind Baby 5: at least her Devil fruit power could be useful if she used it right. 

She crossed her arms dramatically and tapped her foot. “You’re really no fun, you know that?” she outed making him sigh. He made a mental note to beg Doflamingo to never pair him with her after all this. 

Before either of them could speak again, there was another loud crash, this time from the entrance in front of them. He found himself with no time to react as a large man with brown hair in a captain’s coat came running out of the mine, his crazed eyes meeting Law’s. The man reached out his arm, his hand the size of Law’s upper body, and grabbed the small boy around the throat, pushing him to the ground. He could hear Baby 5 shouting and shooting at him, but the man was unphased. He could no longer hold the sword, his body weakening and his breath became more panicked and his vision blurred. His ribs cracked and ached under the weight. Anger and frustration enveloped him as he tried to fight back against the man; he couldn’t die, not yet. 

**Moments Earlier**

“As expected of you, Diamante.” 

Mei, Doflamingo, Corazon, and Senor Pink walked a few feet into the entrance. Diamante had headed in before them as Doflamingo sent Law and Baby 5 to the side of the mine. He had quickly taken down the guards standing in their way, their dead bodies sprawled across the ground. Mei jumped up, gripping onto Doflamingo’s arm so she wouldn’t step in the blood. 

“Oh Doffy, it wasn’t anything special.” Diamante waved off the compliment. “We should get going before he shows up.” Senor Pink said coldly, taking a drag of his cigarette. Diamante shot him a glare that was ignored. Corazon stepped forward, attempting to take the lead. “Oh no you don’t. You’ll fall ten seconds down and we’ll all follow after.” Diamante grabbed him by the shoulder. Corazon clenched his fist, biting down on his cigarette angrily. Doflamingo chuckled as he pulled Mei up, holding her with one arm. “Now, now everyone. We’ve-”

There was a loud explosion behind them, the front entrance of the mine came collapsing down, blocking their main exit. A vein grew on Doflamingo’s forehead as he held onto Mei tightly. “Young Master-inn! What’s happened?!” Buffalo’s voice came through the Black Den Den Mushi. Doflamingo quickly closed it as a cackling laughter erupted from down the shaft. 

“If it isn’t the Don Quixote Family, with Doflamingo himself. How fortunate am I that I get to kill all of you!”

Wellington stood arrogantly with a switch in his hand. “Wellington. You’re no easy man to find.” Doflamingo spoke calmly. Mei gripped his feathered jacket tightly. She knew that he would kill this man in an instant, she wasn’t worried about that. In fact, she didn’t really care if anyone in the family died. But Law and Baby 5 were stuck outside, possibly in this crazy man’s path. She’d never admit it outloud, but she cared for both of them. Baby 5 was annoying, sure, but she was just a dumb little girl with no where else to go.

“Well, all I really wanted was for you to come find me! If I kill you, I get to take over this wonderful underground operation you’ve created!” Wellington held his arms up as he shouted. Corazon and Senor Pink quickly drew their guns but Doflamingo held his arm out, stopping them. Mei could see the veins growing on his forehead, anger flooding his veins. His opposite hand twitched ever so slightly, but not subtle enough that Wellngton didn’t catch it. 

Within seconds, there was another blast, shaking the entire mine. Another entrance behind Wellington collapsed. He laughed maniacally again. “I’ve gotten several areas marked off, there's no way you’ll be getting out of here alive. Why can’t you just give me what I want?”

“Do you really think you can kill someone like Doffy? Or anyone in this family for that matter?!” Diamante pulled out a long piece of fabric, creating a sharp blade that he pointed towards the captain. “Not by myself, of course not! But I’m no idiot. I have a plan, and don’t worry, I’m sure it won’t take long to suffocate in here.” 

Another click of the button in his large hands and the ceiling in front of them fell. Doflamingo quickly covered Mei, holding her close to his chest. Senor Pink sunk into the ground, managing to beat the rubble before it collapsed on him. He disappeared, following a cackling Wellignton through the mines, leaving the other four trapped in the darkness.

“Oi, Doffy, what do we do now?” Diamante coughed. Mei dug her fingers into Doflamingo’s chest. The darkness was almost overwhelming. She could hear Diamante’s coughing, but couldn’t begin to figure out where he was. Corazon lit a cigarette, giving some light to himself against the fallen walls. “Father…” She started to speak, but he pulled her out from under him. “Corazon. Take her.” He spoke through gritted teeth, tossing the young girl to his brother. The impact sent both of them flying backwards, but Corazon held her tightly, protecting her.

"Hm. Too bad anyone who crosses us wasn't left alive to tell him how terribly stupid he is." There was almost a little joy in Doflamingo's voice. Several of his bones cracked and echoed around the other. Without warning, Mei assumed he must have used his strings to slice open the ceiling, letting fresh air and sunlight back into the broken mines. Diamante cried out as he was buried under the rocks. Corazon turned his body so he was laying on top of her, protecting her. She clenched her fists around his shirt, closing her eyes as the crashing rocks deafened her. For the first time in a while, she was scared of dying.

  
  


Law grimaced painfully as Wellington refused to lessen his grip. He slammed his small fists against his arm angrily. Baby 5 was still failing to incapacitate him with her powers. His vision was fading; he couldn’t believe the last image in his mind was an ugly bastard with a stupid grin on his face. His mind suddenly strayed, thinking about Mei, hoping she was ok. If he wasn’t facing certain death, he would be punching himself in the face for actual caring about someone else again. He suddenly felt guilty he wouldn’t be able to hold up his side of the deal anymore. 

The thoughts quickly faded as he caught a blurry glimpse of pink feathers from the corner of his eye. Everything happened so fast he could barely process it. There was a glimpse of blood as his vision came back into focus and the weight of Wellington’s crushing hand lifted from across his neck. Law grasped at his shirt, the pain from his broken ribs seering through his upper body. 

“Law.”

He opened one eye to see Doflamingo looking down on him, standing in front of Wellington’s bloody, unconscious body. His heart started to race.  _ ‘He’s going to kill me for being so weak.’  _ He slowly sat up, clenching his teeth through the pain. Baby 5 began sobbing and threw herself on Doflamingo’s leg dramatically. “Young Master, we're so sorry! We tried our hardest but he was just too strong!” She managed to choke out. Doflamingo chuckled slightly. “I’m just glad you both are ok. I won’t let anyone hurt my family and get away with it.”

Senor Pink came swimming out from the opening of the mine, standing up right behind Wellington’s body. “Tch. Guess I missed the fun.” He muttered, placing a cigarette between his lips. Doflmaingo grinned widely. “No need to worry. He wasn’t worth a fight anyways.”

There was a loud crashing noise from the now collapsed mines. Diamante came walking over the rubble, holding his head. “Oi, Doffy! You have to warn us before you do anything like that again!” He complained, turning around to look at something. “Corazon, you clumsy ass bastard! How are you not dead yourself?!”

Doflamingo furrowed his eyebrows. “We didn’t have very long to escape, I wanted get to these two quickly.” Diamante groaned at the answer, but did not question it. 

“Cora-san, i can’t move this rock!”

Mei popped up right behind Diamante, her face covered in dirt and a few minimal scratches. “Cora-san got his jacket caught on a rock and fell!” She called out to them. Law’s eyes met hers, which he instantly regretted. “Are you guys ok?!” She quickly pulled herself over the rocks, sliding down past Diamante. Corazon had somehow managed to free himself behind her, his tall, lanky body emerging from the background.

Law groaned as he grabbed the front brim of his hat, covering half of his face. He didn’t want her to see him like this; she’d only feel sorry for him. Baby 5 continued to cry loudly, still hooked onto Doflamingo’s leg. “M-Mei-sama! That scary guy tried to kill Law!” She whined obnoxiously, snot dripping from her nose. He tried to shoot her an angry glare, but she wasn’t paying attention. 

“Ah, I guess it’s a good thing Father was able to get to you guys quickly, then.” Mei let out a sigh of relief. “Are either of you injured?” 

“Law-kun is hurt pretty bad!”

“I-I’m fine!”

“Are your bones broken?” Mei asked, leaning slightly to the side, her wavy blonde hair gently falling over her shoulder. Law continued to pull his hat down over his face. “You three head back to the ship, we’ll take care of things from here.” Mei nodded quickly to her father. She placed her arms gently around Baby 5’s body and peeled her off of his leg. The younger girl immediately grabbed one of her hands tightly while wiping the tears from her eyes.

Law frowned deeply as he began walking back to the ship, the two girls right at his heels. “Are you sure you’re ok? You’re being awfully quiet. Usually you’d be yelling at me by now!” Mei continued to pry at him. "I'm fine." His voice was hoarse as he spoke. He went to place his hands in his pocket, but the pain from doing so caused him to stop in his tracks. 

"You're not fine! Are your ribs broken?" She attempted to place a hand on his side but he stopped her. "So what? It's my fault for being a worthless pirate." 

"I've already told you, father wouldn't keep you here if he didn't think you had potential." She tried to reassure him. "Just let me heal you."

"I'd rather not have my ribs fused together."

Her face turned a bright red as she puffed her cheeks out in anger. "H-Hey! That's not fair, I'm not that dumb!" She squeezed Baby 5's hand tightly. Law had a slight smirk on his face as he continued their path. "I have never done anything that bad to anyone!" She tried to defend herself, stamping her feet and dragging Baby 5 to catch up to him. “Just let me help you!”

“No!”

“Law, dammit!” 

* * *

  
  


A/N: Ah I'm so sorry for this extremely late chapter and just leaving. I had a rough time a while ago, then things got better, but I had no motivation to write. I started playing Stardew Valley and immediately fell in love with Shane and started writing about him and the writer's block disappeared! Hope all is well, more chapters will be coming I promise. :)


	8. 8-Blessed With A Curse

**_‘Ever since this began,_ **

**_I was blessed with a curse’_ **

“So, so pretty!” Giola cooed as she tied a giant pink bow into Mei’s half pulled back hair. The older woman beamed as the young girl’s blonde, wavy hair bounced softly against her shoulders as she stood. “Now let’s smooth out this white dress and you’ll be all perfect!”

“It’s time to go.”

Doflamingo announced himself before he even entered the room. He had his hands casually shoved into the pockets of his black trousers: for once he didn’t don his pink feather coat, only wearing a black blazer on top of a white button up shirt. Law followed shortly after, wearing a matching outfit with the first few buttons of his shirt undone. 

Giolla huffed and pulled Mei in front of her, placing her cold hands on both shoulders. “Young Master it takes time to make a girl look beautiful! Besides, we haven’t done one of these in almost two years, I want to outdo myself this time!” She whined. Doflamingo grinned and shook his head. “It doesn’t take much to make my daughter look beautiful, right Law?”

“Hm.” Law muttered, not really caring about the adult’s conversation. He was more focused on his heart rapidly beating in his chest. His nerves were starting to get the better of him. He had been put on several missions since the Wellington incident months ago, and he was starting to notice his improvements with the help of Mei’s training. But this was a different type of mission, something he hadn’t done. There was going to be a fake trade off: the promise of Mei’s hand in marriage to some creepy guy in exchange for total control of his underground drug trading, but then kill them all before . Mei had told him last night they used to do these a lot back in North Blue, so there shouldn’t be anything to worry about. He figured, if she wasn’t concerned, then he shouldn’t be either.

Mei stared ahead, not really paying attention to anyone. She really just wanted to get this over with. She had hoped they’d never have to do these fake trade offs again. It made her skin crawl the way these men talked about her, even the way they looked at her. She didn’t think her father would ever let anything bad happen to her, but he couldn’t always be trusted. 

Removing herself from Giolla’s control, she walked forward in between her father and Law. “I’m ready.” Her voice was empty and cold. Doflamingo chuckled as he followed close behind her, Law at his side. “Someone’s eager to get started, I see.”

The trio met Corazon and Pica on the deck, both men wearing suits as well. The sun was setting as the ship pulled up to the dock of an island with a large, bustling city. “We’ll be having dinner tonight with Sugawara, one of the leading drug lords in North Blue. He’s requested no more than five of our Family members be present.”

“Doffy, what if they turn on us?!” Pica asked in his high pitched voice. Mei could see a smile wriggling its way onto Law’s mouth. She quickly elbowed him the ribcage and he shot her glare as he rubbed his side. “What if, my dear Pica. I think you know what happens to anyone who crosses us.”

The five of them headed down the ramp onto land with Lao G, Baby 5, Giolla, and Diamante waving them off. Mei grabbed onto Corazon’s pants, tugging gently so he would pick her up. He scooped her up in his arms and she held onto his blazer tightly. “Do you not take your hat off because you don't brush your hair?” She pulled the end of his hat, making him smile with the cigarette dangling from his lips. He nodded silently and she laughed. 

Law glared at the two of them from the corner of his eye as they walked into the city. People were flooding the streets, most of them already drunk. It was already obvious this wasn’t a very friendly place. Women in strange outfits were calling out to people, including himself, asking provocative questions. He picked up his pace, putting himself in between Doflamingo and Pica. “This is your first time in a place like this, neh, Law?” Dofalmingo was grinning down at him. “Just ignore them, they won’t bother people who aren’t interested.”

It wasn’t much longer before they reached an extremely large casino. There were a number of guards outside the door blocking guests from getting in. The five of them pushed their way to the front. “Ah, Don Quixote-san! Please, come right this way! We have everything set up for you!”

There were hundreds of maids and butlers running around the inside of the casino. Mei frowned and pushed herself into Corazon. She was hoping that they’d never go through this again, but here they were. Again. She was tired of being inappropriately touched by gross, older men. 

They walked into the dining hall, which, for the amount of people working, was not as full as expected. There were three round tables, each seating ten people. Both tables on the sides were full while the middle one had set placements for the five of them. 

“Don Quixote Doflamingo! You’ve finally arrived!” 

To no one's surprise. The man sitting at the head of the middle table was large and greasy. His big nose had a large septum piercing a scar that ran across it horizontally. His vibrantly blue hair sat on top of his head in a bun. He was happily munching on a drumstick, sauce dripping down his chin and onto his grey button up shirt. “Please, come take a seat!”

“Yamaguchi-san, it’s nice to finally meet you.” Doflamingo bowed half way. “Ah, no need for formalities! Let’s eat!” Yamaguchi smacked a chair that was left empty in between himself and a younger man with a bald head. “Please, let the guest of honor sit here!” The other two tables were immersed in conversation and other shenanigans, too busy to focus on the new arrivals. Everyone else turned their attention to Mei, still in Corazon’s arms. 

She wasn’t scared or nervous anymore, not like the first time. With a gentle squeeze, he reluctantly set her down on the ground. She smoothed out her dress and curtsied. “Don Quixote Mei.” Her voice was empty but powerful; Law was a little surprised. “Oi, you brought me a child?!” Yamaguchi grumbled through mouthfuls of food. Doflamingo chuckled. “You never specified a specific age.” 

“Tch.” The blue haired man rolled his eyes and gestured towards the empty seat. “This’ll have to do then. Come, child. Sit here. You’ll make a fine bride for my son Keshin.” The bald man on the other side gave an awkward wave. He was a skinny man with a kind looking face, the exact opposite of his father. Mei calmly walked over and pulled herself into the seat. “Is there any food that you’d like, my lady?” Keshin’s voice was soft as he beckoned a waiter over to them. 

"I'm not very hungry. Something light please." She said shortly as the rest of the crew sat down. Law was seated across from her, a big scowl plastered across his face like usual. "How about a salad then, my lady?" Keshin suggested. She nodded, "That will be fine." The waiter took off in a hurry to fetch her food. These people were more talkative than normal; she hoped they could go home soon. She had practice writing and reading every day since Law had started helping her. She was hoping to surprise Corazon by reading one of his notes for him. 

"Ah, Yamaguchi. Let's get to business then shall we?"

"So early? You've just sat down? At least eat a meal and relax before we deal with other things." Yamaguchi waved Doflamingo off. A tick formed on his forehead as he gripped the silverware tightly. "We don't have all day for this." He said seriously. His tone forced the other man to stop his own feasting and set the almost bare bone down on his plate. The waiter placed Mei's salad in front of her, but quickly departed when the atmosphere of the room seemed to change. The other two tables suddenly quieted, raising suspicion. "And why don't we have time, Don Quixote-san?" 

"I have other businesses to attend to. I'm a very busy man." Law grew uneasy in his seat; he could see the other two moving their hands towards their own weapons. He watched Mei, who solemnly stabbed at her salad on the other side. He might not know much about fighting, but he knew they had already separated a crucial person from them. He didn't want to think about what they had planned for her. 

"But you're selling your own daughter off, do you not care to be here for her?" He was right. Doflamingo didn't care for her. Just another pawn in his game, something she already knew as well. Keshin was trying to distract her from the ongoing argument with small talk, but failed miserably. Something was about to happen, she could feel it. 

"I don't normally show my face to people I make deals with, yet here I am with my own daughter and very little of my family, just for you.” 

Law didn't hate Mei, he’ld never admit that he actually liked her, but he couldn't stand the sound of two grown men treating her like an object. His hand gripped his pants leg tightly to keep him calm.

Everything that happened next was almost a blur, he had zero time to react. Keshin, who had been quietly talking to Mei, stabbed her in the shoulder suddenly with a dagger made purely of seastone. Yamaguchi began cackling and started filling the room up with smoke from the plan of his hands. "I knew you were untrustworthy from the beginning, Don Quixote! We’ll kill your daughter and take you down with her!" His voice boomed as their silhouettes disappeared. The groups at the other tables began to move, covering their own faces with gas masks, and pulling out their weapons. 

"Oi! Corazon, grab Law and move out of this room." Doflamingo shouted before covering his mouth. Law was gagging, he could barely make anything out in the thick gas, but he could see Mei getting pulled from her seat and taken from them. Corazon grabbed him up by the waist and dragged him out of the building, with just the two of them. 

Doflamingo's all too familiar sting marks could be seen on some of the rubble that was flying from the now crumbling casino. People were screaming and rushing away from the scene. "Oi! Corazon!" Law coughed some and pulled on the man's shirt. He knelt down and placed his hands on either side of his shoulders. 

"That kid took Mei with him out of the back room. They might still be in there!" He rubbed the debris from his eyes. Corazon scribbled on a paper quickly. 'I'll go back inside and check with Doffy and Pica. Stay here.' he wrote but didn't give Law enough time to react before making his way back inside. _'Dammit. Useless, again.'_ He cursed to himself as he watched the structure shake and slowly collapse in certain points. Out of the corner of his eye, he could see the shadow of someone running down the back alleyway. It looked like they had something on their shoulders. Mei?

Without hesitation, he took off after the figure. Luckily, he managed to find a lone dagger on the ground towards the back exit of the casino. It was hard to follow the person, there were so many colorful citizens running amuck, but he distinctly made out Mei’s pink bow Giolla had placed in her hair bouncing on the back of the person’s shoulders. They turned and ran into an abandoned building. Law stood outside of the window, standing on his tiptoes to peek inside.

Mei was slumped over, hands bound and her back leaning against the wall. That young, bald guy, Keshin, was pacing worriedly in front of her. “Damn you, Don Quixote pirates.” He placed his hands on his head dramatically. “We were supposed to have a nice dinner, quickly end all of this and take over your stuff. It was going to be quick and easy, like father said so! But you guys had to ruin it all!” He shouted angrily before turning to her. She didn’t look up at him. “Well, what do you have to say, huh!?” Her refusal to answer pissed him off, and he kicked her across the face. Her body fell over and she spit some blood on the ground. Law’s fingers gripped the windowsill so hard he was sure it would splinter into his hand. “Fine, whatever. Don’t speak, you rotten bitch. I guess I’ll just go check to see if the guards made it out.” Keshin mumbled the last part to himself before stomping his way to the back of the house. 

Law took the opportunity to sneak in through the front door. The floorboards creaked, but with the commotion outside, he could barely even hear it. “Mei…” He sat the young girl back up gently. The pink ribbon slipped out of her messy blonde hair and onto the floor. Her nose was bloody and her eye bruised; she looked up at him with confusion. “Why did you come here?” He furrowed his eyebrows angrily at her. “Don’t ask stupid questions, idiot. Let’s just get out of here.” He noticed the dagger still stuck her shoulder, but the bleeding had stopped. She shook her head. “No. Just get out of here, it’ll be fine.” He stood up quickly, glaring down on her.

“Why?! So you can just die?”

“Yes.”

He clenched his fists. That was the stupidest thing he’d ever heard her say, and he genuinely thought she was the more rational one here. “That’s selfish of you.” She looked up at him and narrowed her eyes. “Law, please just leave me.” She was starting to shout now. He crossed his arms over his chest. “You’re not the one who knows when they’re going to die!” 

“Get the hell out of here you brat!!” Keshin had come barging back into the old house. Thankfully, he was still alone. “I can’t use my powers with all this seastone.” Mei pulled herself to her feet, a bit unsteady. “It’s fine, I’ll take care of it.” Law held the dagger firmly in his hand. He knew she had no faith in him, but there were no other options left except to fight. Keshin lunged at Law, no weapon in hand besides the height and weight he had on the smaller boy. Without hesitation, for once, Law moved forward against him, dodging his oncoming fist and bringing the dagger up by his head to slice open Keshin’s arm.

“Shithead.” Keshin cursed, pulling back and clutching his new injury. It was easy to tell the man had no real fighting experience, well, even less than Law had. But, there was no time to think. He moved forward again, dagger in both hands and placed it in front of him. He stabbed it deep into the man’s belly, something he hadn’t seen coming. Law knew he could survive this, so he pushed up, slicing up the man’s abdomen and into his diaphragm, stopping just below his sternum. There was so much blood as he removed the dagger: on his hands, his shirt, most of it dripping down from Keshin’s wound and mouth. 

His body made a loud thud as it fell to the ground. He gurgled for a few moments before his body ceased movements. Law stared him in the eyes as the life left his body. His hands were wet, he wasn’t sure if it was the blood or sweat. He was mixed with emotions of revolt and relief. He realized, in this moment, he didn’t really enjoy killing people as much as he thought he would. 

“I think the key is in his hand.”

Mei’s small voice brought him back into reality. He opened the dead man’s hand and a little gold key dropped onto the floor with a ‘clink’. Law could barely grasp it in his hands. “Thank you.” She said quietly as he fumbled to unlock her handcuffs. “Why? I thought you wanted to die?” He was still upset with her; he’d never admit that she was his only friend right now. He couldn’t bear to be left alone, not again. 

“I do, but….” The handcuffs finally snapped open. “You just risked your life for mine, and it wouldn’t sit right with me to waste that.” She gave him a small smile through her messy hair. “Tch. Shut up.” Her words embarrassed him. “I still need you to finish training me, that’s why I saved you.” He tried to cover it up. She saw through it, of course, but played along. “And you have to finish teaching me to read and write.”

She went to remove the sea stone weapon from her shoulder, but he grabbed her hand. “No.” She frowned at him. “If you take it out you might hurt yourself more, cause more bleeding. Wait until we get back on the ship and can safely remove it.” He explained. “But-”

“But nothing. Don’t be stupid. Let’s leave.” He grabbed her hand in his and pulled her behind him. “You’re so demanding.” She muttered, dragging her feet behind him dramatically. She knew in her heart he meant well; he’d never tell her that he would actually be sad if she died. And she was right, he wouldn’t understand what it was like to live a lie as the daughter of the man who murdered her parents. How hard it was for her to push down the sick feeling every time she was forced to call him ‘Father’. But she also had no idea what it was like to know how little time she had left in this world. Things were bad for her, but they could be worse. She had Corazon, Law, and even Baby 5 (on occasion) who actually cared for her. 

“What are you smiling about, idiot?”

She couldn’t stop a light from escaping as Law dragged her down the chaotic and half destroyed streets. “Oh, nothing. Just thinking about how sad you’d be if i died.” His grip on her hand tightened so much it hurt a little. “If you don’t shuttup I’ll leave you here.” 

“Ah, no you wouldn’t, Law-kun.”

“.......shut up.”

The pair continued their way back to the ship, the popular gambling city burning behind them in failure. It would be a long time before another such heist would be attempted again by the Don Quixote Family. 


	9. 9-Suffer Through

**_‘A fire still burns inside_ **

**_But it’s struggling to stay alive.’_ **

“He said we’re landing at a port town called Fishbone tomorrow.” 

Corazon stood there with his mouth agape. He had been trying to ask a question to Mei, except Baby 5 and Buffalo were in the room with them. The three children could not read (at least that’s what the other two said) and he was frustrated. Mei had told him to write his question down, which he did, reluctantly. ‘What’s the name of the town we’ll be landing at?’ He had a meeting with Sengoku in an hour, and he had completely forgotten the name of the town. Asking anyone else would raise suspicion. 

‘You can read now?’

The young girl nodded happily, holding a sleepy Dellinger in her arms. They were getting ready for bed and he had managed to catch her just in time. “Law taught me! I can read better than I can write though.” She said a little self consciously. He smiled softly down at her, placing a hand gently on her head and ruffled her hair. Things were so bad for so long, he never thought he’d see her smile again. Even though Law was a little asshole, he was thankful she finally made a friend. They had both grown so much since being here; he could hardly believe they were almost teenagers now.

“Neh, neh. Cora-san, you’re getting too sentimental.” She giggled, shaking his hand off her head. He gave her a big smile, but she was right. He really wanted to cry just looking at her. ‘Meet me in our spot in 10 minutes.’ He quickly scribbled on a little corner of his paper. “O-ok!” She was surprised by this, but didn’t have a chance to say anything else as the silent man ran off. 

“Cora-san’s so weird.” She whispered to Dellinger, who mumbled something incoherent in his sleep. He was a toddler now, almost too big for her to lug around like she used to do. She hoped he wouldn’t turn out like everyone else on this crew if she took care of him. 

After putting him to bed, she meandered her way down the hallway to a closet the two of them usually had their secret meetings. She looked both ways down the hallway, making sure no one could watch her, and quickly snuck in. 

Corazon was sitting on a box close to the back, his back to her. It looked like he was heaving, maybe he was hurt. “Cora-san!” She cried out, running to him and grabbing onto his coat. “Are you alright?” Slowly, and dramatically, he turned to look at her, tears and snot dripping down his face. She quickly moved back away from him to avoid it from falling on her head. 

“M-Mei-chan.” He muttered, reaching out his long arms to her. There was no way to avoid the giant embrace that he pulled her into. “I’m just so happy. I didn’t think I’d ever see you happy again.” She could barely make out what he was saying through his sobs. “And even though Law is a shit head you guys have helped each other out and I’m so happy.” 

“Cora-san, you’re so weird.” She laughed, gripping onto his shirt as she hugged him back. “I wouldn’t be this happy without you.” His sobs increased ten fold as soon as she said that.

“I’m going to let the Navy know where we are tomorrow and we’ll leave, ok? Just the two of us! I promise.”

“You mean it?” She pulled back, wide eyed. He’d been trying to get the Navy to intercept their ship for years at this point, but it’s always been thwarted. He wiped his nose on his sleeve. “We’ll be free to go wherever we want. And eat whatever we want. And wear whatever we want.” He began to ramble on and on. “Cora-san, I get it.” She laughed, but deep inside she had a sinking feeling. She knew how vast of a network Doflamingo had created. Was there really a way to get away from him completely?

“What about Law?”

She hadn’t realized she asked that question until he looked down at her, surprised. “Ah, nevermind. I didn’t mean to ask that.” She muttered awkwardly. “I know you care about your friend a lot.” He set her down in his lap. “But unless you can convince him to come with us, I think it’ll just be the two of us.”

She pursed her lips and crossed her arms. He was right, there was no way she’d be able to talk him into leaving with them. He constantly mentioned how he only had a little over a year left to live; she could tell he was getting weaker since they first met. 

“I’ll still try!” She jumped off Corazon’s lap. “He’s going to teach me some more things tonight, so I’ll definitely try my hardest to get him to come with us tomorrow.” She exclaimed triumphantly. He smiled at her, glad she felt so passionate about it, but he knew in his heart it would end in failure. “Ah, that sounds like a plan. Tomorrow, we’ll be free.” He held out his hand to her, which took eagerly with both of hers. “Tomorrow!”

  
  
  
  


“You’re late.”

Law was sitting at the desk, flipping through one of the many medical textbooks Doflamingo let him read. Mei froze for a second before hanging her head. “You could say something nice to me every once in a while, ya know?” She sighed loudly before pulling herself into the chair across from him. The white spots were starting to grow larger and spread across varying parts of his body, including his face. It made her heart heavy. 

“What are you looking at, idiot?”

“We should run away together.” She blurted out. If she hadn’t sounded so serious, Law would have laughed at such an invitation. “Why? So we can get killed like everyone else who does?” He didn’t look up from his book as he spoke. She pouted, puffing both her cheeks out. “You’re being ridiculous. Do you want to start your lesson or not?”

_ ‘He’s grumpy tonight.’ _ She thought to herself, pulling a book with an anatomical skeleton on the front into her lap. “Fine.”

He was talking about sentence structure, something that bored her to death. She couldn’t focus much, anyways. It hurt to know she’d be leaving him to die on this ship with Doflamingo and the others. She really enjoyed their time together. 

“Are you even paying attention to me?”

“Yes.” She lied, putting the book on the desk. “I even wrote you a sentence.” She turned it around to him, trying to hide the smile on her face. In the corner of the inside front cover of the book was a doodle of Law with snot dripping from his nose. ‘Law looks like Trebol.’ She had scrawled in her messy handwriting under the surprisingly well drawn picture. Law’s face fell as he saw her artistry. His eyes shot daggers at her as she attempted to stifle the giggles. 

“You’re not paying attention at all.” He sighed, shutting the book closed. “I’m sorry, it’s just really boring stuff and I can’t focus tonight.” She immediately shot up, trying to stop him from getting out of his seat. “You can’t focus cause you’re still thinking about running away, right?” He placed his chin in the palm of his hand. She looked away from him. “I just want to leave this place…..and I want you to come with me. Maybe we could find a doctor-”

“No doctor can cure this.”

“-well how do you know that?”

She was starting to get upset with him. “Because my father would’ve found a cure and my family wouldn’t be dead.” He answered shortly. She slowly sat back down in her seat. “But maybe there’s someone else out there who might know.” She tried suggesting softly. “I’m not spending my last year alive on finding something that doesn’t exist. I think that’s enough for tonight, let’s go to bed.”

“But Law….” He ignored her pleas as he cleaned up the few books he pulled out. “Goodnight, Mei-sama.” His words hurt; he never called her that when it was just the two of them. She watched silently as he left the room, her heart sinking into her stomach. She pulled a piece of paper over in front of her and began scribbling what sentences she could muster out on it. There was no way she’d leave someone who’d become her best friend on such bad terms.

  
  
  
  


Mei tapped her chin lightly as she searched the bookshelf. Law had mentioned to her recently there was a special edition of  _ Sora, Warrior of the Sea  _ being published as a standalone comic. Since he told her that, she had been writing the name Sora religiously so she could know how to read it; she planned on getting it as a present for him for his birthday. 

After what felt like forever of searching, she spotted the brightly colored comic cover:  _ Sora vs Germa 66.  _ “Aha!” She exclaimed, pulling the issue off the shelf and running over to the clerk. “Here you go!” She handed him the money she stole from her father before leaving the ship. “Well look at you! I think you managed to grab the last issue I have! Lucky girl you are!” The older gentleman told her, making her smile brightly. “I hope so!” 

As soon as she left the store, she shoved the note she had written Law into the back page. She really hoped he wouldn’t be too upset with her when he found this. 

She nearly skipped back to the ship in excitement, but stopped when she saw some of the grunts running around like madmen, loading things onto the ship and yelling at each other. “Oi, Mei-sama!” Buffalo and Baby 5 were leaning against the railing, waving at her. “We gotta go! The Navy’s here for us!” 

_ ‘So soon!’  _ She quickly made her way up the ship, unable to find Corazon. Doflamingo and the others were preparing for battle and she could make out a fleet of ships heading straight for the port. She had to hurry to give Law his present before they left! 

Thankfully, everyone was distracted as she snuck towards her room to grab her bag. “Mei!” She jumped as she opened her door; Corazon was sitting on her bed with Law tied up and a sock shoved in his mouth. The young boy was kicking wildy, trying to free himself of Corazon’s grip. “What are you doing?!” She was in shock but slammed the door behind her. “Law’s coming with us. Get your things; as soon as they start fighting, we’re getting in the small ship on the back in leaving!”

It didn’t take long for the whistles of bullets and cannonballs to start up. The ship began to sway violently as Corazon scooped the two children up. Law was still trying to fight his way out of the ropes. “Cora-san! Why did you grab Law?!” She held tightly onto his coat as they snuck past the rest of the crew, too focused on the fight to really notice them. “I’ll explain later, we need to leave!” He tossed the two of them into the small boat first before starting to lower it. Law flailed violently on the floor of the boat. “I’m sorry Law! I’ll untie you once we leave!” She tried to calm him down by placing her hands against his chest but he only kicked harder.

Her heart was racing as Corazon threw himself on the boat after them; for once the man didn’t trip over himself and fall into the sea. The waves were rough against the tiny boat, but they managed to steady themselves long enough to sail away from the fight and out into open waters; far enough away they couldn’t be seen by the naked eye anymore. 

“Aha! We made our getaway Mei-chan!” Corazon cheered as he sat Law up on a seat. She nervously held onto her bag and the bag he packed for Law; she didn’t feel safe, but she was happy to be away with the two of them. Even though Law was, well, less excited about it all.

“It’s child abduction!” He cried as soon as Corazon removed the sock from his mouth. Mei couldn’t help but giggle at him as the Den Den Mushi began to ring. “I can’t believe you would do this to me!” He suddenly shouted at her. She pouted in response. “It wasn’t her. I told her not to even try to ask, but I figured you’d tattle so I brought you along.” Corazon lied as he lit a cigarette. The snail began to ring louder, pissing Law off even more.

“Hey, answer that Den Den Mushi! It’s from Doflamingo isn’t it?! I need to talk to him! Doflamingo come and rescue me!!!”

She laughed at him being so dramatic and moved to sit next to him as Corazon unplugged the line, shutting the snail off. He began to pull some books he had stored on the boat earlier out, stacking them one by one in between them, She was a little worried the boat would sink with the amount he pulled out. 

Law quieted down for a short while, Mei pressed against his side. She was uneasy herself, worrying that Doflamingo would show up at any moment. She watched intensely ass Corazon flipped through a few pages, the only sound between them was the crashing waves of the vast ocean. 

It had been about two hours of this before Law finally broke. “What are you going to do to me!?” He shouted. “Do you really think we’d hurt you?” Mei nearly scoffed that he would think that and leaned against the bag in her lap, resting her head down on her arms. “We’re going to cure your disease.” Corazon said shortly, angering Law even more. “I told you both, it can’t be cured!”

“We’ll go to every hospital we can.” He seemed to remember something suddenly and plugged the Den Den Mushi back up. “Hey, are you calling Doflamingo?! Hey, come and rescue me!!” The other end of the line picked up.

"Rice crackers!"

Mei had never heard this voice before; she figured it was the Navy. "Rice crackers pellets. It’s me.” Law was still, much to her annoyance at this point, trying to wriggle his way out of the ropes. “Ah….Rosinate.” That name hadn’t been spoken out loud in a long time. “I need to leave my duty for a while.” Corazon was still flipping through a book, his brow furrowed. 

“Running into trouble?”

“Just a personal matter.”

The person on the other line was munching away on some snacks. “I see...How are the little ones? Is your harassment still failing to push them out?” He looked up, making eye contact with her. “Not these three I fear. Mei-chan was trying her hardest with the youngest, but he seems to enjoy chaos just as much as my brother.” 

“The family’s name is reaching far and wide by now. Be careful.” She clutched her bag tightly, feeling sick at the thought of Doflamingo finding them. “I will.” Corazon could see the worry on her face. “I’m leaving the matter in your hands. Do as you see fit...I’ll wait for the report.” The person on the other line had full confidence in Corazon. “Understood. I’ll put it in writing.” 

“No need to worry, Mei-chan.” Corazon tried to sound hopeful for her. “We’ll be just fine.” She gave him a soft smile, but Law quickly ruined the mood. “Who were you calling just now?!” He kicked her in the shin. “Watch it!” She pinched his cheek, letting her bag fall on the floor of the boat with a loud ‘thunk’. He didn’t pay any mind to her seething beside him. “You said something about duty! Wait, you aren’t in the Navy are you?!” She tried shaking his face to get him to shut up. 

“Do you hate the Navy?” Corazon lit a cigarette calmly. “Everyone involved with the government makes me sick!” Law’s words were sounding less like real words as she continued to pull and push his cheek. “I’m not a Navy man.” Corazon lied through his teeth; something he was able to do surprisingly well. “Really?!”

“Ah. I wouldn’t lie about such a thing.”

Mei released him, a loud popping sound emitting from his mouth as his cheek popped back into place. “You’re both really annoying, you know that?” Law grumbled. “You!” She pointed at him with an annoyed face. “You’re the one that should be called annoying! I hope you lose your voice with all that screaming!” He opened his mouth to say something back, but both of their stomachs growled obnoxiously loud. Corazon couldn’t help but laugh; even with the pending threat of his brother, these two kids were going to make for a rather interesting adventure. 


	10. 10-Why It Scares Me

**_‘And if my heart just stops, pack my memories in it_ **

**_I want to know all the love I’ve got’_ **

“No! I don’t wanna go to the hospital!” 

Law struggled under Corazon’s grip as he picked him out of the boat. His anxiety was rising at the thought of someone finding out about his disease. “Quit sounding like every other kid in the world.” Corazon griped, shuffling through some papers one handed. “Maybe we’ll find a really nice doctor who has a cure for you!” Mei was trying to be optimistic, but it just made Law feel sicker. 

“You don’t understand!” He shouted, continuing to flail as they walked from the docks and into town. “This isn’t going to help! You should’ve just left me!” Her face fell as he spoke. He couldn’t be hopeful about anything; he knew his disease and he knew what it entailed. His entire home was razed to the ground because of the stigma, and they thought they could just waltz into some random hospital and save him?

“Just look how BIG this one is! They gotta be able to fix you up!”

_ ‘They’re either oblivious, or stupid.’  _ Law sighed, giving up his fight as they walked into the fancy looking hospital. Mei stood behind Corazon, gripping onto his feather coat nervously as they walked up to the front desk. “How can I help you guys today?” The receptionist had a kind voice. Corazon held Law up to her, his cigarette still dangling from his mouth. “My son is sick.”

She giggled, to Law’s surprise. He crossed his arms and huffed. “Didn’t want to come to the doctor, huh sweetheart?” She pulled out a clipboard and handed it over the counter. “Just fill this out and the doctor will be with you shortly!”

“Didn’t you live in a hospital?” Mei asked as they took a seat with Law in between the two of them. She pulled her legs up into her chest and held them tightly. “It kind of makes me feel…..icky.” He shot her a look from the corner of his eye. “Shut up.” He started picking at his pants leg nervously. Every inch of his body was screaming to run away and find his way back to Doflamingo, but there’s no way the other two would ever let him get away with that. 

After thirty minutes of pure agony, they called the three of them back into an exam room. Corazon took a seat behind Law; Mei stood beside him, gripping his coat nervously again. It made him irrationally angry; this was most likely her fault, she had no reason to be nervous. 

“Alright, young man.” The doctor sighed as he sat down in a chair across from Law. His nurse, a rather, interesting looking woman, stood behind him with a clipboard, ready to take notes. “Your name is Trafalgar Law, correct?” He didn't answer at first, but COrazon kicked the back of his seat. “Yes.” 

“And what’s wrong with you today, son?”

“....I’m sick.”

The doctor laughed and turned to look at him. “Well, I assume that’s probably why you’re here then. Maybe your father can give me an answer?” The doctor looked up at Corazon from underneath his brow, almost pleading to help him out. “Ah.” Corazon coughed a little after catching on. “Law’s suffering from White Lead Disease. He says he doesn’t have much longer to live.” 

“W-White Lead Disease?!”

“It’s been long enough, haven’t they invented some medicine for it, doctor?” Corazon casually asked, somehow not noticing the terrified expressions developing on the doctors and nurse’s faces. Mei leaned closer into the large man, worried about what might happen next. “Cora-san….”

“M-Might I ask where you’re from?” The doctor audibly swallowed, starting to back away. His nurse was trembling behind him. “The White Town, Flevance….” Law muttered, looking away. He tried to avoid watching their reactions, but there was no way to stop from hearing their screams. 

“I’m gonna get infected!!!”

“Hurry! G-Get some disinfectant and gloves….and gas masks! Also call security! And inform the government! Hurry!”

He was digging his fingers into his legs so hard his knuckles turned white. All he could think about was all the bodies and the stench of death and blood. Tears started to well in his eyes and he jumped to his feet. “Forget it!” Corazon attempted to grab him as he walked away. “Law!” 

“See!? I’m not even human anymore!”

Mei took off after him running down the hallway, leaving an angry Corazonn with the screaming doctor and nurse. “Law!” She called out, making him stop in his tracks. He didn’t move for a moment, but she could see his body heaving. “Law…” Her small hands grabbed onto his arm gently. 

“This is what you wanted?! Right?!” He shouted, turning his head to her angrily. Tears were pouring down his face as an emergency broadcast echoed in the building, announcing Law’s presence. People were beginning to look at them and panicking. “I’m sorry…” She whispered, her bottom lip quivering. She hadn’t expected it to be this terrible; suddenly, she wished they had never left the ship. He ripped his arm away from her and began to head outside. She followed meekly, ignoring the pleas from other nurses and doctors to stay away from him. 

As they finally reached the outside, there was a loud explosion and part of the building burst into flames. “There’s a large man on the rampage!” Someone shouted out over the loudspeaker as said man ran out of the building angrily, almost breaking his ankle on the exit door. “We’re leaving!” He shouted, picking the crying Law up by the back of his shirt when he walked past. 

  
  


“The worst hospital….” He grumbled as Mei grabbed on to his feathered coat tightly. “Sorry, Law. Did I make you think about the past?” People were running away from them as the trio headed back to their ship. “That’s why I said I don’t want to go to the hospital!” Law thrashed around wildly; Corazon pulled the crying boy close to his face. “We’ll find a good doctor next time!”

"Cora-san, let's just-" Mei tried to speak but he picked her up in his other arm. "We're going to find the best doctor in the world for Law and it'll be fine!" He repeated, looking straight forward with a serious face. She looked over at Law gripping his hat tightly over his face and a pit of despair began to form in her stomach. She was starting to second guess Corazon's motives, but brushed it to the back of her mind. He was right, at least, there could possibly be someone out there who could help Law. They shouldn't lose hope yet. 

  
  
  


Law poked and prodded at the campfire in front of him. After another failed attempt to find a doctor at the town over, the three of them decided to hide out on the coast of the island for the night. Corazon had run off to find some food, even though there was still plenty stocked on the boat. Law figured he didn't want to deal with the shame.

"L-Law." 

He didn't even look up at her when she spoke. Of course he was angry; he told her what would happen and what he didn't want. All of which was happening now. It was starting to feel like what little time he had left was being wasted. 

"I know you're really angry." She sniffled; it genuinely surprised him she was crying. He didn't think he'd ever seen her cry before. "Cora-san decided to take you last minute; it was supposed to be the two of us." She hesitantly sat down next to him, gripping her back pack against her chest. "It probably hurts a lot to have people treat you like that. I'm so sorry."

When he didn't answer she continued on, her voice wavering. "I'm sure Cora-san has his reasons…...but I just don't want you to die." She buried her face into her hands. "If there's even the slightest chance of helping you I don't want to miss it. Y-You're my best friend and I just want all three of us to be happy and together forever."

She was sobbing at this point. He bit the inside of his cheek, trying to prevent himself from crying as well. Deep down, he knew they meant well. At least Mei did. 

"St-stop crying, you big baby." He Thought his voice would be stronger, but his words came out mumbled. She sniffled and turned to him, rubbing away some of the tears on her cheek. He sighed loudly and leaned back against the log behind them. "Just forget about it. It's fine. There's no need to be upset."

"But-"

"But nothing." His words were stern, making her stiffen up. He didn't have it in his heart to tell her he was wrong, anyways. Even if he would only survive nine more months instead of a whole year, maybe it wouldn't be so bad. 

"I want to make it up to you." She spoke softly before digging around in her bag. "I was going to give you this for leaving, but since we're here together you probably need it now." His eyes widened as she pulled the comic book out and handed it to him. She forced herself to smile brightly. 

"T-This is….the Special Edition Sora vs German 66! How'd you get this?!"

"I just happened to find it right before we left. I remember you saying how much you wanted it."

His face started turning a bright red as he clutched the book. "Thanks, Mei." He whispered, slightly unable to comprehend the niceness of such a gift. "This must have cost a fortune." She waved it off and moved a little closer to him. "I stole some money from my father!" They both laughed at that. "Do you think you could read some out loud? Hearing you read helps me understand it better."

"Yeah, sure." He swallowed a lump in his throat. He wasn't sure why, after all this time helping her read and write, he was nervous.

They barely made it halfway through the book when she slumped over against his shoulder, just barely awake. His own eyes were starting to get heavy, but he knew he needed an answer to a question that's been bouncing around his head for years. 

"Mei?" She let out a small 'hm' but didn't move. "Do you mind if I ask you a question?" He asked, closing the book and looking at the night sky. Clouds were starting to roll in, covering the crescent moon halfway. "Go ahead." ' _ she must be tired.'. _ he laughed to himself; it was unlike her to not give him some sarcastic or smartass response. 

"Is Doflamingo your real dad?" 

Her whole body tensed up against him. It took a moment for her to answer, he wasn't going to push her for one, and honestly he thought she'd just fallen asleep. "No, he isn't." 

"Hmm."

"He didn't want to lose my Devil Fruit abilities…..he was going to make the other Corazon eat it." She continued, mumbling with a sleepy voice. He tested his head back, closing his own eyes. This other 'Corazon' was confusing to him; he didn't understand why Corazon went by that name too. Her hand reached up slowly and grabbed onto his sleeve, bringing him back out of his thoughts. "I was so hungry…..it was all we had…..my parents were so upset with me and I didn't understand."

"You don't have to keep talking." He whispered; he was starting to realize maybe he didn't want to go back to Doflamingo. "I hate him… I want to stay with you and Cora-san forever….." She was starting to really fall asleep; her head became heavy on his shoulder and her grip loosened. 

He waited until she began snoring softly to let his tears run. He put his arm over his eyes and tried not to move too much so he didn't wake her. All this time he was stuck on his own suffering and thinking only of himself. He thought back to the first day he officially joined and, even though she was a bit snotty, she had been trying to help him. All these years she'd just been trying to be his friend and he couldn't have cared less. He felt sick just thinking about it all. With what little time he had left, he was going to try his hardest to make it up to her.

Corazon stumbled back to their makeshift campsite, a bag of food Thrown over his shoulder. He had taken one too many drinks from a crate he found.  _ 'Mei-chan will be so mad at me~'  _ he thought to himself, trying his hardest not to trip over his own feet. 

He was surprised to find the other two asleep, curled up against each other. His heart swelled inside his chest. He dropped the bag with a loud this and walked over to them, setting each of his large hands against their heads. Neither of them stirred; Law’s head was gently laid on top of Mei's, both of them snoring lightly. 

"You both must be so tired…." The tears wouldn't stop pouring from his eyes as he grabbed the thin blanket and draped it over their legs. He couldn't help but adore these two rotten children, no matter how much trouble they caused him. He was going to do everything in his power to save Law. For once, he felt like everything might be alright.

* * *

**A/N: Sorry for this late chapter, life just really got in the way this week. I just wanted to thank everyone for all the kudos, comments, follows, favorites, etc. It really means a lot to me! I really just write this to clear my head and didn't expect much of anything so thanks very much. :) I know it's not amazing and I don't upload often but I'm working on bettering myself!**


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